First Times For Everything
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: Two girls born into darkness find light in each other. [Pre-series].
1. The Girl In The Shadows

**Here we are with another Catradora fic! Yes, I'm basically rewinding, since my first fic Just Us dealt with present-time season1 Catradora, and then The Edge Of Greatness rewound to pre-series Catradora, and now this is... well it's literally their first meeting as little kids (or at least, what I imagine their first meeting to have been).**

 **This story is going to consist of multiple, but shorter chapters. The first few will deal with Catra and Adora when they are very young, about 5 or 6, then there will be time skips in future chapters where they'll get older.**

 **The idea behind the events of this story is "first times" so for example, "first meeting" in this chapter. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.**

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First Times For Everything

Chapter 1. The Girl In The Shadows

Adora's been here at the Fright Zone for as long as she can remember. And considering she's only 5 and a quarter years old, it hasn't been too long.

Only recently has Shadow-Weaver allowed her to start meeting some of the other children who live here. And even though some of the other kids are a bit older than Adora, Shadow-Weaver had assured her time and again that Adora would be one to succeed in her eventual training for Force Cadet.

But for now, she is simply here to meet her fellow future cadets in order to start forming bonds.

In spite of the Fright Zone's many off-limits areas, it is a very large place, and the base camp where the Horde soldiers are trained is large enough to accommodate even the most adventurous of children.

Shadow-Weaver and several other higher-up adults had arranged to have all of the children come together in a spacious area where they could converse, play, and begin socializing with their future trainees.

Adora stares wide-eyed at the dozens of other kids. She's never seen this many before in one place. There are all different kinds of children here. Some with scales, some with fur, and some with skin like her.

Adora already sees a couple of children she recognizes. With a toothy grin, she waves and calls out to them.

"Hey, Kyle! Rogelio!" Adora dashes over to them, waving excitably.

Rogelio taps Kyle with his stubby green tail to get his attention. Kyle stumbles and turns around.

"What? You mean me?"

"Yes, silly!" Adora giggles. "What other Kyle is there?"

"I dunno. I'm just surprised someone remembered my name."

"Well, _I_ remembered," Adora says proudly. It's then she realizes there's another child with them there, a girl she's never seen before. "Hi! My name's Adora. What's yours?"

The other girl has dark thick hair and a matching toothy grin.

"Name's Lohnie!" she says. "First time I've seen you around here!"

"Yeah. Shadow-Weaver didn't always let me out a lot cuz she was worried I could get hurt. But I wanted to show her I'd be fine!" Adora puffs up her chest proudly, and the other three smile.

All around the area, plenty of other children are already laughing and playing together too. Adora looks around, excited to see so many kids all in one place. She wants to be friends with all of them.

But that's when her eyes catch sight of one kid huddled up in the shadows at the corner of the room.

They're wearing somewhat darker clothes, so they blend in pretty easily. They're huddled up with their knees to their chest and their face buried in their arms. Anyone who runs by doesn't seem to notice that kid, or if they do, they never stop to talk with them.

Adora can't stop looking though. She begins wandering away from the other three kids toward the child in the shadows. Kyle's timid voice stops her.

"H-Hey, where're you going?"

Adora doesn't look back. She just keeps staring at the other kid, as if looking away might make them vanish into the darkness.

"That kid... They're all alone..."

The others look up to follow her line of sight. Lohnie is the one who speaks up.

"Oh, forget it. That girl is just sad and mean to everyone. All she does when you go near her is like... _hiss_ at you or something weird! She wants to be alone, so let her."

"What?" Adora frowns. "There's no way she wants to be alone. Not when everyone else is out here having so much fun. I'm gonna go talk to her."

"Don't!" Lohnie warns. "She bites people, and claws 'em too!"

"I'll be okay. I just wanna talk." Adora waves to the three of them before scampering off across the room.

If she hadn't spotted that girl before, she might never have noticed her at all. She'd found a really good spot and a dark shadow to hide in, and she isn't moving at all.

Adora leaves the rowdier play area behind and approaches the girl in the shadows. She walks with slow, quiet shoes, and notices right away that the other girl is barefoot. She has longer toe nails that look more like claws, and the same is true for the nails on her fingers.

Adora can also see a soft furry tail wrapped around the other girl's knees. Her hair is thick and messy and wild, and when Adora gets a few feet away from her, she sees two big fuzzy ears twitch and shoot up.

"Hi," Adora says. "What-"

" _Kkhhhhh!_ " Immediately, the other girl lifts her freckled face and lets out a big loud hiss. Her ears go flat and her tail puffs up and starts to swish.

Adora notices her eyes right away. She's never seen someone with two different colored eyes before. She thinks they're really cool and really pretty.

"Sorry," she says even more softly. "Does it hurt your ears if people talk too loud?"

The other girl's eyes widen, and her ears perk up again for a second before drooping once again.

Adora guesses she was right.

"Sorry. I'll talk quieter. Is it okay if I sit with you?" She moves a step closer.

But the other girl rounds on her and spits again, showing her fangs, and this time she even lashes out one hand, swiping a warning at the air with her claws.

Adora freezes in her spot. She doesn't go any closer, but she doesn't run away either. She knows this girl is trying to frighten her off, but not because she's angry. She looks more scared than anything.

So Adora just sits down where she is, keeping a good three feet or so between them. The other girl makes a low grumbling sound like the growling of a war machine.

But Adora isn't frightened. She's just curious.

"What's that noise you're making? It's funny!"

The other girl glares at her and hisses again. Adora laughs again.

"That one too! I've never heard anything like it before!"

But the girl with the tail just snorts and curls in more tightly on herself, then slides an inch farther away from her. Adora's smile fades as she realizes something.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to sound like I was making fun of you... and I bet you don't like having to make those sounds either, right? Cuz they mean you're scared."

The girl growls again, lifting her head up sharply.

"I'm _not_ scared!"

Her voice is half-squeak and half-shout. Her fur and hair fluff up a bit, and her cheeks puff up into a pout.

Adora knows she's still trying to scare her off.

But Adora can't be scared of her. Not when this girl looks so cute. Adora just grins another big toothy smile, bigger and toothier than before.

"Hey, you talked!"

The other girl snarls and presses back against the wall, sinking more deeply into the shadows. But Adora scooches in a little closer.

"Hi, Not Scared. My name's Adora." She offers out her hand and waits patiently. She can see the other girl's hand twitch, and the claws seem to get a little longer. She grumbles again.

Adora chuckles. "I'm just joking! I know that's not your real name. What is it then?"

Slowly, the claws shrink back again, but she still doesn't reach for Adora's hand. The girl makes more grumbling and whining sounds to herself for a moment. Her different-colored eyes keep flashing back to Adora's hand, then away, and then back again.

Adora makes it clear she isn't leaving. She just smiles and waits.

Finally, the other girl cracks, and mumbles an answer.

"Catra..."

Adora's big smile only gets bigger.

"That's a really nice name! I like it!"

Catra's mumbling and grumbling pauses for a second then. Adora guesses no one's ever said they like her name before. She moves a tiny bit closer, and this time Catra doesn't move away.

"So," she says gently. "Where did you come from? Did you have parents? Oh, b-but you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to! I was an orphan and Shadow-Weaver saved me."

Adora can't be sure, but she thinks she sees Catra flinch at the mention of the sorceress. But Catra avoids that topic. She raises her face slightly, and one ear flicks.

"Or... phan...?"

"Yeah. It means you have no parents. Is that how it is with you?"

Catra doesn't say anything for a minute. Adora waits nervously, but she's at least glad the other girl hasn't chased her off or yelled at her to go away. Finally, Catra gives a small, tired answer.

"I guess so..."

Adora's smile remains, even if it's a little sad now. She moves even closer to the other girl.

"Sorry to hear that. But it's okay now. Cuz Shadow-Weaver and everyone else here at the Horde is gonna take care of us! And we'll take care of each other, too. I'll look out for you, and you could look out for me!"

Adora offers her hand again.

Catra tenses up and hugs her knees closer to her chest. Adora can see the fur on her tail fluffing up again as it starts to sway back and forth.

But there's no growling sound this time, and no hissing either. Catra's multi-colored eyes flash up to Adora and meet her gaze fully for the first time.

Adora thinks they're pretty, like blue and yellow crystals. Her smile gets bigger.

Catra's eyes move down to the upturned hand waiting in between them. She looks wary, cautious, distrusting.

Adora's seen all of those things in the adults before, but never in another kid. It makes her feel bad for Catra. It makes her want to help and protect her.

She waits for an answer. Even after another minute, she doesn't give up. She doesn't get any closer, because she doesn't want to make Catra feel trapped. But she doesn't leave either. She will if Catra asks her to, but she hasn't yet.

It takes a while longer, to the point where Adora's arm is starting to tingle from holding it out for so long.

But Catra's fingers eventually twitch. Her eyes scan Adora again as she gradually lets go of her knees, unraveling her defensive posture just a little. She reaches out slowly, as if expecting Adora might lash out at her, or hurt her, or withdraw her offered hand.

But Adora would never dream of doing anything like that. She wants to help. She wants to be her friend. More than anything.

Catra keeps looking up at Adora's face, then back down to her hand. Her ears are drooping and nervous, as if she isn't sure if she should actually be touching her. Her fingers with the sharp little claws tremble in midair as she reaches for her.

Adora holds herself back from reaching out to touch her first. She wants Catra to make the first contact.

So she waits and waits, until Catra has finally decided there's no deceit in her offer. Her sharp fingertips brush against Adora's palm. Catra makes a fist and curls her claws in right away, scared she might hurt her.

Adora doesn't want her to pull away.

"It's okay," she says kindly. "You can hold my hand."

Catra looks up at her like a frightened animal. But Adora's eyes are patient and calm beyond her years.

Catra, who's been trembling all this time, finally feels the shaking stop. This girl is different from the others who've taunted and hurt her.

Other kids had been mean to Catra and had forced her to lash out in defense. Sometimes she'd end up hurting them and _she'd_ be the one to get in trouble for it. The adults called her "hostile," and "disobedient." The sorceress called Shadow-Weaver had said some very frightening things to her, too.

It made Catra angrier and more terrified each time.

And when she'd been brought here today, to this new area of the Fright Zone without being told why, she thought for sure they were going to hurt her more, or put her in a cage, or throw her outside to die.

She'd almost wished they would've.

But now...

Now she's glad they didn't.

There's just something about this blonde girl that makes Catra feel... safe. She's never trusted anyone before, but maybe this girl could be the first.

So she gathers up those last few shreds of trust she can feel drifting aimlessly in the bottom of her heart and opens her hand to rest it in hers.

And Adora just smiles and smiles. She's never smiled so much in her entire life. Her face hurts.

"Heehee! Your claws tickle!" She closes her hand around Catra's and gives a gentle little squeeze. It almost feels like Catra is going to pull away for a second though. So Adora loosens her grip to let her if she wants to.

It's the first time anyone's ever done that for Catra either. Usually people, mainly Shadow-Weaver, would grab her hand and pull her around to places she didn't want to go. And if Catra tried to pull away, she'd only squeeze her more tightly, sometimes until it hurt.

But this girl...

This girl is different.

Catra sniffles once, and Adora doesn't miss it. She gets worried right away.

"H-Hey, are you okay? Is something wrong?"

Catra shakes her head, her mane of hair ruffled by the movement. This time she's the one who moves closer, if only a little.

Adora's worry turns back into excitement. She waits eagerly until Catra has come a little closer.

And finally Adora can't hold herself back any longer. She pulls Catra into a hug, wrapping both arms around her back with a gleeful laugh.

"Catra! Let's be friends! I wanna be friends!"

Catra is stiff at the sudden new form of contact. She's never done this before either. No one has ever held her like this, and she's certainly never done it to someone else. She freezes up, almost expecting it to hurt somehow.

But... it doesn't. It doesn't hurt.

In fact, it feels... nice. Warm. Soft. Safe. Things she's never felt all at once before, or as much.

A small sound comes out of her mouth, something like a whimper, but not the scared kind. Slowly, she wraps her arms around Adora too, and her tail slides up to curl around her waist.

Adora giggles again.

Catra likes it. She likes it a lot. The sound of her laugh, and her voice.

"So?" Adora moves back to look at her eyes again, but doesn't let go of her. "Is that okay? Can we be friends, Catra?"

Catra blinks because her eyes are starting to feel stingy. She nods, then quickly hugs herself close to Adora again. She really likes this feeling. And she likes Adora's scent too.

Adora giggles more.

"I'm so happy, Catra! I'm so glad I found you! You can always come to me if you need anything, okay?" Adora feels the other girl's grip tighten. She seems to really like the hug. Adora gleefully obliges and holds her tighter too. "Hey, Catra? Do you remember my name?"

And for a split second Catra is nervous again. Nervous she might have forgotten, or might answer incorrectly and get scolded, or offend her and make her mad...

But those feelings fade quickly. Something softer and warmer settles in instead. The answer comes to her as if she'd known it all her life.

"Adora..."

And Adora squeals.

"Yes! Thank you, Catra!"

Catra burrows more deeply into Adora's shoulder. Her tail starts to tap gently against Adora's side, and her ears slowly begin to lift up comfortably. She feels something bubbling in her stomach, something she's never felt before.

Normally she would've been scared. But she isn't now. Not with Adora here.

The feeling rises up in her chest. It's fuzzy and strange, and as she breathes, a humming sort of sound starts to form in her throat.

Adora hears it too.

"Hey," she grins. "Catra, are you purring?"

Catra isn't sure if that's the word. But unlike the growls that sounded like war machine engines, this sensation is like the rumbling of an idle skiff cruising through the air.

She likes it. She likes _her_.

Catra responds by purring a little harder, getting the hang of this new ability, this new feeling.

Adora giggles again.

"I love it! This is my favorite noise you make, Catra. I hope you can make this one more than the others from now on."

"Mm..." Catra nuzzles closer and closes her eyes for a moment. She takes in Adora's scent and leaves her own on her. She wants everyone to know that Adora is hers now.

After a moment, Adora eases back, but doesn't let go of her hands.

"C'mon. Let's go play, Catra!"

And normally, Catra would never play. She'd just sit and watch and only act if someone else jumped on her and forced her to move.

But this time it's different. She stands up with Adora, keeping her hand on hers. Adora smiles brightly, and Catra feels her own lips curling up as well. When Adora shows her toothy smile, Catra reveals hers too, fangs and all.

Adora hugs her again.

"I love your smile, Catra! I wanna keep seeing it forever!"

So Catra does her best. She follows Adora around for the rest of the day, mostly just listening to her talk. Adora even asks the guards to move Catra's bedroom so she could share with Adora and the other kids now.

Adora doesn't let go of her new friend all day.

All the while their hands stay together.

And all the while, Catra never stops purring and never stops smiling.

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 **A/N: Okay this chapter wasn't just "first meeting" but also "first time Catra purrs/Adora hears her purr." That was mainly what I was after, and I just figured it would've been at their first meeting anyway.**

 **I imagine baby Catra didn't talk a lot at first, so you'll see her being rather taciturn in these first couple chapters.**

 **Please review!**


	2. Bathtime And Bedtime

**So glad people enjoyed the first chapter! More baby Catradora ahead!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

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Chapter 2. Bathtime And Bedtime

The guards that oversaw the children had said they would need some time before they could prepare a new bed for Catra to use. Until then, she will have to make due with a blanket and a pillow on the floor.

But as soon as Adora leads Catra to her new sleeping quarters after a long day of playing and a warm supper of soup, Adora has a much better idea.

With her hand still in Catra's, as it had been all day now, she locates the blanket and pillow that had been left on the floor next to the beds on one side of the room. Adora picks them up and carries them over to her own bed, which is the last one in the first row.

Catra is expecting her to just drop the supplies onto the floor there instead. But to her surprise, Adora places the items on top of her own bed. She lies the pillow down next to her own, then spreads the blanket out over one half. Catra watches her in stunned silence, until Adora steps back, grinning.

"There! All done!"

Catra blinks and tilts her head to one side, puzzled.

"So... now I sleep on the floor... with no blanket or pillow...?"

Adora's grin immediately drops into a gaping jaw.

"What are you saying, silly? You're not gonna sleep on the floor! You're gonna sleep in _my_ bed with me now!"

Catra's ears perk up, but her tail swishes in confusion.

"I... never slept on a bed before..."

Adora gasps again.

"You haven't?!"

Catra just shakes her head.

Adora can barely believe it. But she makes sure to keep her voice low, because she knows other kids will be coming in soon, and she doesn't want to embarrass Catra.

"So... you've slept on the floor all this time...? No bed?"

Catra looks down and nods once.

Adora feels her heart sink a little. But then it jumps right back up.

"Well, there's a first time for everything, right? So tonight will be your first time in a bed! It might be a little cramped though, so if you don't like it, just tell me, okay?"

Catra lifts her face slowly, blinks, and nods again.

Adora smiles and takes her hand.

"C'mon. Let's get ready for bed then."

Several other kids have started to file in by now, talking and laughing as they run over to jump and flop onto their beds. Adora and Catra go to the big bathroom that the children use. There are several sinks, shelves of supplies, and a large bath tub that's almost like a pool, where a dozen kids can jump in to get cleaned off at once.

Adora tries to coax Catra there, but she refuses to go.

"I don't like water..." she mumbles.

Adora can tell she's a little nervous, so she doesn't force her.

"Okay. I'm gonna go in really quick. If you need something just call for me!"

Adora takes off her shirt and shorts, but leaves on the underlying wraps that double as a bathing suit. She joins a handful of other children in the big bath, while Catra lingers across the room.

Instead of bathing that way, Catra finds a wash rag and wets it with sink water and soap. She removes her top layer of clothing as well, then begins washing herself off by hand. She cleans off her face, her neck, her shoulders and her arms, then continues down to her stomach, legs, feet, and tail.

All the while she keeps stealing little glances back to where Adora is sitting in the water.

It's when some other kids go up to her and start talking to Adora when Catra feels her fur bristle. Her tail starts to lash, because she doesn't like other people near Adora. She doesn't know if they can be trusted.

And she also just... doesn't like other people being so close to Adora. Catra wants to be the one closest to her.

But she realizes she can't do that from all the way over here.

Catra looks back down at herself, skin covered in a thin warm layer of soap and water, then looks back up to Adora, happily drenched in the tub. Catra feels a grumbling in her chest, but she drops her rag and slowly begins making her way over.

Adora's just finished hearing a joke from one of the other kids and now is watching them splash water at one another. She'd also been keeping an eye on Catra all the while, and is surprised now to see her moving toward the bath. Adora stands up right away when she's close enough.

"Catra!"

Her voice saying Catra's name makes the smaller girl's ears perk up for a second, though it's clear she doesn't really want to get closer to the large body of water. So Adora moves closer to the edge to meet her.

"Is everything okay?"

Catra looks up at her nervously, but nods. She still isn't very talkative, so Adora decides to guess.

"Do you... want me to wash your hair for you?"

Catra looks down and nods again. Adora grins.

"Sure I will! And don't worry, you don't have to come too far in. Just sit here on the edge and I'll do the rest!" She offers out her hand like before.

And similarly, Catra hesitates at first, but eventually she accepts.

Adora helps her sit on the marble edge of the pool, with only her feet soaking in the warm water up to her shins. Catra wraps her tail around her stomach and hunches forward, hugging herself as if she expects something bad to happen.

Adora moves slowly and carefully around her until she's standing behind Catra. She leans over to the nearest little bottle of shampoo and pumps some into her hand, then rubs them together to lather.

All the while Catra stays that way, looking small and scared. The echoes of other children's high-pitched laughter bounce off the walls and make her sensitive ears twitch and droop. Adora speaks gently to her.

"So how do you usually wash your hair? Did you do it, or did you have one of the caretakers do it for you?"

Catra doesn't say anything. But Adora doesn't take offense.

"It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I'm gonna start, okay?"

Catra makes a small grunt to show she understands.

Adora reaches out her soapy hands to start running them through Catra's hair. Catra flinches as soon as Adora touches her, so Adora stops and waits for her to adjust.

When she's ready, Adora starts to massage with her hands. Catra's hair is thick, clumpy, and tangled, especially in the underneath layers. It makes Adora wonder how often she'd gotten a chance to bathe at wherever she'd been until now. She doesn't even know if Catra had only just been brought to the Horde, or if she's been here for a while already in a different section of the Fright Zone.

But she tries not to let her curiosity get the better of her. She doesn't want to keep asking Catra so many questions that might make her more uncomfortable than she already is. So Adora just talks about other things.

"Wow! Your hair is so nice, Catra! It's fluffy and soft." She pets her hands through the layers, making sure to get a little bit of shampoo everywhere she can. Catra still doesn't say anything, but Adora can tell she relaxes a little bit because of her posture.

Adora keeps running her hands all through the mane of black hair. She hadn't realized until now that there are also a few patches of gray hair as well.

It's when she touches Catra's ears when the other girl reacts. She grunts, tenses up, and makes a move to pull away. Adora instantly apologizes.

"S-Sorry! I didn't mean to! I... I didn't hurt you, did I...?" She pulls her hands away and clasps them together, hoping she hadn't done as she fears.

Catra's claws have come out to grip at the marble tub, but as soon as Adora moves back, some of the tension fades away. Catra looks slowly back over her shoulder, finding Adora to be genuinely upset at the thought of having hurt her in some way.

Catra's never known anyone to act like that towards her before.

The twisted feeling that's been festering in her stomach all this time begins to unravel a little bit. Slowly, she eases back to bring herself close to Adora again, and shakes her head in response to her question.

Adora notices the claws shrink again. She breathes a sigh of relief.

"I'm really sorry. I should've known not to touch your ears. I promise I'll try not to from now on."

So she dutifully begins to shampoo Catra's hair again, taking extra good care not to make contact with the fur of her ears. But after a few minutes, she's surprised to hear a tiny mumble of a voice.

"You can..."

"Huh?" Adora leans sideways to catch sight of Catra's blue eye. "I can wash them? Are you sure?"

Catra holds her gaze for a moment, then nods. Adora straightens up again.

"Okay! I'll be gentle, I promise! If you don't like, it just tell me to stop, okay?"

With one hand, she reaches out to lightly brush her fingertips over Catra's soft ear. It flicks beneath her touch, but eventually stills. Adora strokes her fingers very gently over the short black fur, barely making any contact at all, only enough for a bit of the soap to transfer over. She pays close attention to Catra in case she's going to make her stop.

But Adora manages to carefully lather both ears without a hitch. She feels proud in her accomplishment. She taps Catra's shoulder.

"I'm done! Want me to rinse you now?"

But before Catra can respond, some noisy kids nearby end up making a ruckus and jump into the bath. The spray hits Catra directly. As the adult caretakers scold the rough-housing children, Catra gives a loud hiss, scrambling back instinctively to clutch onto Adora. She growls and spits and shakes herself off, hiding her face in Adora's shoulder.

Adora holds her close to help her feel safe.

"Catra! Are you okay? You don't like water that much, right? You said that before."

Catra hisses again, but it eventually turns into a whimper. Adora pats her shoulder.

"It's okay. I have an idea. Come with me."

Adora takes her hand and slowly leads Catra away from the tub. She stops by the little shelf with clean towels and grabs a couple, then hands one to Catra so she can dry herself off.

There are also a few toys kept on that shelf, most of which have already been taken by other children, but Adora finds just what she's looking for. She picks up a small bucket before guiding Catra to a drier, quieter area.

"Here," she says, having her sit on the floor. "I'll be right back. Just dry off, okay?"

Catra nods into her towel and slowly begins padding her chest and stomach dry.

Adora takes the bucket and rushes back over to the tub, dunks it in to fill it, and then rushes back without spilling too much. Catra's eyes widen at the sight of it, but Adora quickly calms her fears.

"Don't worry! I'm not gonna dump the whole thing on you. I promise." Adora puts down the bucket and lifts up her hand to extend her pinkie.

Catra's soapy ears perk up, but she tilts her head.

Adora blinks.

"You... don't know what a pinkie promise is?"

Catra shakes her head. Adora elaborates.

"It's like a swear! If you make a pinkie promise with someone, it means you're going to keep that promise no matter what! It's the ultimate trust! And you can trust me, Catra!"

Catra hesitates for a long moment. She'd certainly never trusted anyone else in her life as much as she's willing to trust Adora.

Adora keeps her hand out like she had at their first meeting earlier that morning, waiting patiently for Catra to respond.

It takes another minute, but Catra eventually reaches out a slow, timid hand and reflects the motion, sticking out her pinkie finger. Adora smiles, loops them together, and squeezes gently.

"Thanks for trusting me, Catra. I'll take good care of you!" She kneels down behind her and places the bucket next to herself, ready to get started. "I'm gonna start rinsing off your hair. I'll help you dry your back off when I'm done."

She dips her hands into the bucket and scoops up as much water as her palms can hold, then begins drizzling droplets on top of Catra's head. Catra stiffens again, but it only lasts for a second this time.

Adora takes care to avoid Catra's ears for now and just focuses on rinsing out her hair. She lets the water fall slowly, not all at once, and makes sure to get the underneath layers as well. She dunks her hands over and over again, rinsing Catra's hair little by little until the bucket is empty. At that point Adora hurries off to refill it and is back within a minute to continue.

Catra is still and quiet all the while, clutching the towel to her chest. No one had ever been this patient with her before. Whomever had bathed her in the past would just dump water all over her, or worse, force her into the bath and have her dunk her head under. Remembering it makes her sniffle.

Adora hears it and immediately stops.

"Catra? Are you okay? Did I do something? I'm sorry!"

Catra shakes her head, but doesn't look back at her. Her voice is a tiny mumble.

"Isn't it a bother...?"

"Huh?" Adora tilts her head. "You mean washing your hair for you?"

Catra nods.

Adora pats her shoulder again.

"It's not a bother at all! What's most important is that you're more comfortable this way, Catra!"

Catra doesn't say anything, because she doesn't know what she _can_ say. No one's ever been this nice to her before. No one's ever thought about Catra before themselves. She whimpers again and hides her face in her towel.

But Adora can tell by her raised ears and swishing tail that she's happy, which makes Adora happy too.

She continues rinsing Catra's hair until the only remaining suds are on her ears. For that, Adora only cups water in one of her hands and uses the other to pet the water gently across each ear.

At long last, Catra's bath is finished.

"All done!" Adora claims. "Here, lemme dry off your back for you since I'm the one who got it all wet."

Catra looks different with her normally-fluffy hair now damp and straight. Adora gathers it all to one side to reveal her small back. There are a couple of stripes running across her skin there like there are on her upper arms and legs. Adora rubs the towel up and down gently until she's sure she's gotten every last drop.

"Okay," she says. "Now we just gotta dry our hair and we'll be all done!"

Adora hands Catra her towel back, then picks up the one she'd grabbed for herself. She starts padding it through her own hair to rub it dry, expecting to see Catra doing the same.

But instead, Catra just gives herself a mighty shake, which sends dozens and dozens of water droplets flying. And just like that, her mane of hair is back to its usual thick wily mess.

Adora can't help but chuckle at the sight of her now.

"Catra! Y-You're hair's bigger than you are!"

Catra's ear flicks at the sound of her laughter. But it doesn't annoy or upset her like other kids' laughter does. Instead, Adora's laugh makes her smile.

After they've finished drying themselves off, Adora puts back the bucket she'd used and places their used towels into the proper laundry corner. Catra notices just about none of the other children are following those rules or cleaning up after themselves.

Adora even starts picking up other toys and towels scattered across the floor. Catra cautiously does the same, picking up a little toy skiff that floats in the water and returning it to its proper shelf. The adults stationed to watch the room smile when she does this. Catra feels her fur fluff up and quickly runs back to Adora.

They put their clothes back on, then wander over to the sinks to brush their teeth. Adora glances over and is mesmerized by Catra's pointy fangs.

Once they've finished, their hands naturally come together again as they walk back to the communal children's bedroom. A few other kids are already back and asleep in their beds, or are talking quietly with friends. Adora and Catra walk all the way over to Adora's bed, which still has Catra's blanket draped over one half of it.

"Time for bed!" Adora says, plopping down onto her side. "I'm so tired cuz I had so much fun with you today, Catra!"

Catra glances down at the bed, then back up to Adora, as if she isn't sure she's allowed to be sharing it with her. Adora smiles.

"It's okay! We're allowed to share beds on cold nights, right? So they won't mind if you sleep on mine! It's much better than having you stay on the floor!" She pats the covers invitingly.

Catra still hesitates.

"Will you... have enough room...?"

"Of course I will! You're littler than me anyway, so it won't be a problem!" Adora pulls the blankets down and crawls underneath on her side, watching Catra expectantly.

It takes her another minute of nervous glances and drooping ears, but Catra eventually joins her.

But not in the same way.

Instead of getting beneath the blankets and stretching herself out like Adora, Catra curls herself up on top of them and nestles herself into a ball with her back to her.

Adora blinks curiously and sits up.

"Don't you wanna use your pillow?"

Catra shrugs.

"Don't need to..."

"But won't you be cold?"

"Doesn't matter..."

Adora's seen plenty of other children who sleep in different ways, but usually if they curl up like Catra does, they'll do so underneath the blankets.

But from what she's learned about Catra, just from knowing her for a day, Adora can tell she doesn't like to be smothered. So heavy blankets covering her entire body probably isn't comfortable for her, even if it means she'll be chilly overnight.

Adora frowns as she tries to think of a solution.

As other kids finally begin filing into the room and getting ready for bed, Adora stares at Catra's back and her ruffled hair. The only thing she's got to cover herself is her tail and her hair, which are probably still a little cool from the water. Sure enough, Adora sees a shudder go through her, and Catra curls in more tightly on herself.

There are only two things Adora can think to do for her like this.

First, she slides herself closer to Catra beneath the blankets, until her stomach is pressed as closely to her friend's back as possible.

Then, she picks up the blanket meant for Catra, and gently drapes it over her. But not fully, only across her back and over her legs. She makes sure to leave Catra's shoulders and head exposed.

Catra opens her eyes when she feels what Adora is doing. Adora eases back.

"Sorry. I just thought you might get cold. I don't want you to get sick..."

Catra blinks up at her, but doesn't remove the blankets.

The lights are shut off just then, and Adora flinches. But to her delight, she discovers that Catra's mis-matched eyes glow brightly in the darkness.

"Wow. Your eyes are really pretty."

Catra makes a weird sound and quickly buries her head into her arms. Adora chuckles and slides a little closer to her.

"Goodnight, Catra. I'm really glad I met you."

And in spite of everything that had happened to Catra today - in spite of being scared of Shadow-Weaver and being brought to a new area she'd never known before, in spite of the other kids being mean to her or ignoring her...

At the end of the night, a small purr rumbles to life.

Because in spite of it all, she'd found someone who smiled at her, someone who cared about her enough to ask if she was okay, someone who offered to share her bed and say 'goodnight' to her.

In all the darkness, Catra feels she's finally found a ray of light.

"Night... Adora..."

Her voice, much like the rest of her, is small and timid.

But with Adora by her side, she believes she can become stronger, and more confident.

If Catra's learned nothing more from today, it's that she wants to stay by Adora's side forever.

* * *

 **A/N: So this chapter had a lot of firsts for them! First bath, first promise, and first night together!**

 **I'm also trying to write a little more... childishly (?) for these chapters. As in, fewer big words and whatnot. I want to make it feel like it's from a couple of 5-year-olds' perspectives right now, at least until the timeskip (which should be around ch5!)**

 **Please review!**


	3. Assurances And Accidents

**Thanks so much to everyone reading this! I'm enjoying writing baby Catradora so much! This chapter might be a little awkward just because I don't exactly know how to describe/imagine much of the Horde's base camp, but I'm sure you can envision what it's like.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 3. Assurances And Accidents

When Adora wakes up the next morning, she feels the weight of something on her bed that had never been there any other morning.

As soon as she remembers Catra, a smile spreads across her face. She wiggles herself closer to her new friend, who is still curled up beneath the blanket Adora had draped over her last night.

Even though Adora is beneath the sheets Catra is on top of, she still manages to lay an arm across Catra's back, and presses close to her in a loose hug. She's never slept in the same bed as someone else before, but it's really nice, especially now in the colder seasons. And she isn't sure if Catra is awake or not, but Adora starts to hear the rumblings of a faint purr.

They snooze for a little while longer, until other children begin waking up too. Once the room is full of chatter and movement, Adora knows it's time to start getting ready. She sits herself up and nudges Catra gently.

"Catra, rise and shine!"

At first, the only response is a soft groan, and Catra doesn't budge. But only a few seconds later she shoots up into a sitting position, ears fluffed and tail lashing, the purr replaced with a growl. Adora quickly puts a hand on hers.

"Hey, it's okay! It's just me. You slept in my bed last night, remember?"

Catra looks over her, and her fur gradually lies flat. Adora smiles.

"Did you sleep okay?"

Catra looks away, but nods. Adora picks up her hand and squeezes it.

"That's great! I'm glad! C'mon, let's get ready for breakfast!"

Adora gets out of bed and starts making it tidy. Catra stretches herself out and yawns before following suit. They change out of yesterday's clothes and into new ones, whichever pants and t-shirts have been washed and returned to them by their adult caretakers.

By the time they get to the mess hall with the other children, their stomachs are rumbling. As usual, it's another warm gruel this morning, along with a bit of bread and fruits or vegetables. They both retrieve and fill their trays as much as is allowed, then head for a table.

All the while Catra never leaves Adora's side for a second, or wanders so much as an inch away from her. Adora knows she's nervous because she's never been at this part of camp before, so she makes sure not to go too fast so she doesn't lose her.

They sit with some of the other children at the kids' table, though only Adora talks while she eats. Unlike Catra, she knows just about everybody here and is friends with them. She introduces Catra to them since the girl won't speak for herself.

But Catra only slumps closer to Adora and hides herself, too scared to look up or start talking to anyone else.

They finish eating and get up to put their trays in the return pile. Once they're done, Adora turns to her new friend.

"So what did you usually do after breakfast at... wherever you used to be? Here, we play! All day long! It helps us hone our skills for when we become cadets in the future!"

Adora sees the spark of curiosity in Catra's yellow and blue eyes.

But before she can muster up an answer, the girl suddenly freezes. A gasp dies at her mouth, her ears drop flat, and her tail wraps tightly around her body and trembles. It's as if someone's cast a spell on her and she can't move or talk.

Adora frowns and puts a hand on her shoulder.

"Catra? What's the matter?"

Catra's shaking now, and her eyes are wide in terror. All she can manage to do is shake her head, but no words come out of her mouth. Adora begins to panic.

"Catra-?"

"Ah, _there_ you are, my dear."

A deep, familiar voice speaks from behind her, and Adora glances back. Shadow-Weaver hovers there, with her robes and hair swaying in the non-existent breeze. Adora whirls around to grin up at her.

"Good morning, Shadow-Weaver! We were just about to go play!"

"That's very well and good, Adora," the sorceress says sweetly. But her voice then drops into a lower, less pleasant pitch. "But it's this ' _we_ ' that's worrying me." Her bleak white eyes look past Adora to the girl cowering behind her. Adora keeps her hand in Catra's reassuringly.

"Oh, that's right! Shadow-Weaver, this is Catra! She got moved here yesterday! So I'm gonna show her around today! We're gonna play together!"

"Oh yes," Shadow-Weaver grunts. "I know _exactly_ who the little cur is. The most _disobedient_ child I've ever had the displeasure of dealing with. I didn't expect she'd still _be_ here..." She mumbles something else to herself, something Adora can't exactly hear. But she notices Catra's ears flick behind her, and the girl immediately shrinks behind Adora's back.

Adora knows Shadow-Weaver can be harsh on other children, though she's never been mean to Adora. So she keeps herself between Catra and the sorceress as much as possible.

After a moment, Shadow-Weaver reaches out a crooked hand. Adora hears Catra yelp softly. But the hand comes to rest gently on top of her own head instead, petting through Adora's hair.

"Perhaps," Shadow-Weaver muses. "This could turn out for the better. Do try to make her listen to and obey Horde protocol, would you, Adora? If not, we have no use for such _insolent_ children."

Adora holds herself a little taller, puffing her chest out.

"I'm gonna help Catra get comfortable here. We're gonna be Force Cadets together before you know it!"

Shadow-Weaver hums to herself and withdraws her hand.

"I look forward to it, my dear."

And with that she turns and slips away into the shadows.

Adora turns back to Catra slowly, still holding onto one of her hands, and puts the other on her shoulder.

"Are you okay? I know Shadow-Weaver can seem kinda scary sometimes, but she's just trying to look out for us."

Catra's eyes are still wide and scared, and her ears are all the way down.

"She... yells a lot..." That's all Catra says before pressing herself close to Adora. Adora hugs her until she stops shaking.

"I'm sorry. I'll try to help you so she won't yell at you anymore, okay?"

Catra shivers again, but nods. Adora hugs her for a little while longer before easing back, still holding her hand.

"C'mon," she smiles. "Let's go play."

Adora leads her out into the many long, intwined hallways of the base camp, where the younger children are permitted to play before they officially begin their cadet training at the age of six.

Adora chooses a spot away from the other kids for now, because she knows Catra is still shy and nervous around others. Once they've found a quiet area, Adora lets go of Catra's hand and turns back to her.

"Okay! So I'm guessing you know the three best games a future Force Cadet should play, right?"

But Catra only tilts her head to one side in a clearly puzzled manner. Adora backtracks.

"Okay, that's fine! I'll just teach you now. First is tag, which is good for speed and strategy. Second is hide-and-seek, which is wit and strategy. And finally is wrestling, which is about strength and strategy. Every good Horde member knows you need to have a plan for every situation. You can't just go in blindly and hope something works out. So that's why those three strategy games are the best!" She explains it all with textbook perfection.

Catra listens with both ears perked up attentively and gives a small nod.

"Got it."

Adora grins. "Okay! Then let's start with tag! Though I've gotta warn you, I'm pretty fast! Ready..."

She crouches down a little bit to prepare to run. Catra mimics her, tail swishing, lips curled up just a little. Then, Adora flashes her hand out and taps her on the shoulder.

"Tag! You're it!"

And she turns to start running in the opposite direction, already giggling to herself. But almost immediately, she feels a hand on her back. She freezes and turns around. Catra withdraws her hand innocently.

"Tag."

And then she's off running. And she's _fast_.

Adora hadn't seen her run like this yet since they'd met. Catra has always been reserved and cautious so far. Adora didn't think she'd be _this_ quick. But within seconds she's already halfway down the corridor.

Adora snaps out of her trance and gives chase.

"Hey! Wait!"

"I don't think I'm supposed to."

Adora chases her for several minutes, but Catra maintains her lead. Not only is she quick, but agile. She doesn't just run, but she jumps and climbs and does all kinds of other impressive things too.

Adora chases her for a while before she realizes she's never going to catch her this way. So at one point, she veers off down another hallway and hurries around to cut Catra off. Her advantage is that she knows this area of the base so well she could traverse it in her sleep. But Catra's new here, so she doesn't know it yet.

Adora manages to end up in front of her new friend, who's now stopped to look behind herself once she'd noticed Adora was gone. Adora tiptoes up to her very quietly.

Catra's tail starts to flick, and her ears droop down as she stares at the empty hallway behind herself.

"Adora...?" She calls out timidly into the empty space. She even takes a step back the way she'd come, clearly worried she'd lost Adora, and in turn gotten lost herself. "Adora-?"

"I'm right here! Tag!" Adora jumps on her unsuspecting friend from behind and tackles her to the floor in a hug. Catra yelps in surprise, but more than anything she's relieved to have found her again.

Adora chuckles, proud of her little victory. Catra just hugs her; she doesn't mind the loss if it means being with her again.

But Adora can tell right away Catra isn't giggling or smiling with her. Her ears are low again, and her tail is curling around Adora's back like it does when she's nervous. Adora pats her head gently.

"Sorry. Did I scare you?"

Catra nuzzles into her shoulder.

"I thought... I got lost. I thought you left me..."

Adora feels like she wants to frown and smile at the same time.

"I'm sorry. I didn't leave you, Catra. I promise I'll stay with you no matter what! Even if it's just a game I'll always be on your side, okay?"

Catra wraps her tail a little more tightly around her friend.

"Okay..."

Adora gives her another squeeze before stepping back.

"You're really fast, Catra! I'd say you won that game! So how about we try hide-and-seek next? Do you know how to play?"

Catra blinks up at her a little nervously and shakes her head. Adora pats her shoulder gently.

"Okay, I'll explain! One of us is gonna count to thirty and the other one is going to hide! Find the best hiding place you can, as long as it's safe, and don't come out unless the other person says they give up. It's to improve your stealth skills. Wanna try?"

Catra thinks it over for a moment, but eventually nods.

"Great!" Adora says. "I'll count first. So you go and hide. And don't worry. I promise I won't leave until I find you, or until I say I give up. Though I should warn you, I've never had to give up a round before!"

She sits down where she is and covers her eyes.

"All right, I'm gonna count to thirty! Go hide! One... two... three..."

As she counts, she doesn't even hear Catra's footsteps or feel a movement of air, so she doesn't even think her friend has moved at all from where she'd been standing. But as soon as Adora reaches thirty, she opens her eyes to find herself completely alone in the corridor. She stands up and stretches her legs out a bit.

"Ready or not, here I come!"

She looks around herself, but can't see any good hiding places or signs of Catra. So Adora chooses a direction and begins walking.

She checks every nook and cranny, behind every twisted pipe and underneath every overhanging chunk of wall. She searches thoroughly everywhere she goes, but after about ten minutes the corridors loop and bring her back to her initial starting point.

She's baffled, because she's usually found the hiding people by now. Not willing to give up yet, she does one more lap, but still comes up empty-handed. For once, Adora has to admit defeat.

"Okay, Catra! I give up! You can come out now!"

She waits for a minute, wondering if she'll have to start walking again and keep calling out until Catra can hear her from wherever she's hiding.

But before Adora can start walking again, she catches sight of movement in the corner of her eye. She looks up to the ceiling, where one of the big pipes enters the foundation and disappears. There's only a slight gap in the concrete, but two eyes blink back at her from the darkness.

Catra slips out of the shadows and drops down lightly onto the floor, barely making any sound at all. Adora claps.

"Wow! That was great, Catra! You're the best hider ever!" She runs to her and grabs both of her hands in her excitement. Catra's ears flatten a little, but not in a bad way. A blush spreads across her cheeks, and her tail curls up again.

Adora is already eager to play more. "Okay! Now I'm gonna hide, and you count and then try to find me!"

Catra nods and then sits down like Adora had to cover her eyes. She starts counting quietly, and Adora tears off.

She might not be as agile as Catra to let her hide up high, but Adora knows every inch of the Fright Zone inside camp. She knows all the best spots.

She doesn't hold back with Catra. She chooses her best hiding spot ever. It's a part of loose wall directly at a corner. She slides it aside, slips behind it, and then moves it back into place.

It's dark and squished, but she still fits, and she knows exactly where to grab to reopen it from the inside. She can't hear anything other than the hummings and whirrings of the ventilation system, random things dripping and clicking and turning on or off.

She just expects to be here for about ten minutes or so until she hears Catra calling that she gives up-

"Adora." Three knocks sound directly on the other side of the wall as Catra calls out for her softly. "Found you."

Adora's jaw nearly hits the floor. She scrambles up, pulls the rickety wall aside, and can't believe her eyes. Catra is standing there, still looking nervous like she usually does, but just a little bit more proud. Adora shakes her head in shock.

"No way! That was my best hiding spot! How'd you find me?! And so quickly?"

Catra shuffles her feet and swishes her tail again.

"I followed your scent."

Adora is in disbelief, but she's also really happy for her friend.

"That's amazing! That's so cool, Catra! You're so smart! And talented!" She throws both arms around her and squeezes. Catra freezes up for a second, but eventually hugs her back softly.

"You... really think so...?"

"Yeah! I mean, you found such a good hiding spot so quickly and never gave yourself away, and then you found me _behind a wall_ in like... ten seconds! That's super awesome, Catra!"

Catra hugs Adora tighter as the beginnings of a little purr start up in her chest.

"No one's... ever called me those things before..."

It's quiet between them for a moment. Adora is more surprised about what Catra's just said now. She hugs her tighter too.

"Well, then everyone else is just jealous or stupid. Cuz you're amazing, Catra! That's obvious! You're gonna be one of the best Force Cadets they've ever seen!" She feels Catra's hands grip her shirt more tightly, and the purr gets a little louder.

After a moment, Adora proposes the final game.

"Wrestling!" she declares. "This time neither of us has to run away or hide. We're just gonna fight here and now, one on one, no weapons allowed!" She crouches down a little and rubs her hands together, smirking. "Are you ready?"

Catra mirrors her, crouching low, finding a comfortable and balanced stance, tail swishing. She nods.

"All right!" Adora says. "Go!"

With this, she charges Catra right away, grabbing both of her hands as the other girl throws her arms up to block. They tussle for a moment, pushing and pulling against each other's weight.

Adora is slightly bigger than Catra, so she isn't surprised when she begins to overpower her.

But to her surprise, it was just a faint on Catra's part. The smaller girl lets Adora push forward, but Catra quickly lets go of her and side-steps, causing Adora to lose balance and fall forward. Catra gives her a shove to knock her to the floor, then pounces on top of her. Adora manages to grab hold of her wrists at the last second.

"Not bad, but you're gonna have to do better!"

She rolls Catra off herself, and the wrestling continues.

They go on for several minutes, rolling around the floor, scrambling up, charging and blocking, and repeating the process.

At one point, Adora really believes she's going to win. But Catra surprises her by reaching out to poke a single finger at Adora's forehead. It's such a small action it distracts and confuses Adora for a second. And during that second, Catra laughs and tackles her again.

They end up on the floor once again, both of them chuckling now at the fun of it all. But Adora manages to push Catra onto her back and pins her down.

"You put up a good fight, Catra! But I'm winning this!"

And that's when the laughter stops.

Catra's eyes suddenly go wide and her ears droop. She looks just like she had the first day Adora had found her – scared.

Maybe it's because she feels like prey, like she's going to get punished or hurt for losing. But her bare feet react naturally and begin to kick, claws extended as she swipes frantically at Adora's stomach with them.

At first Adora can bear it, but then she feels the sharp nails cutting her.

"H-Hey, Catra, ow!"

She loosens her grip a little, but Catra isn't listening anymore. Her eyes are closed and she's struggling as if for dear life, panicked and wild as she does whatever's necessary to escape. She whimpers and writhes and kicks harder and harder and _harder-_

"N-No, no- stop!" Adora winces as she's pummeled by the claws and heels, and eventually she has no choice but her let her go. Adora collapses to the floor beside her friend, panting and holding her stomach.

"Ow... ow ow ow..." She peeks down to find her shirt has been shredded, and there are a few scratch marks stretching across the skin underneath. She's bleeding, but only a little.

As soon as she's free, Catra scrambles away and starts to bolt, fear still prominent in her eyes, hair and fur frazzled. Adora winces, but she has to let Catra know she isn't in any real danger.

"C-Catra, wait..." She pushes herself up as much as she can, but it hurts, and she drops back to her knees. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you... We were just playing..." In spite of the pain, she looks up to Catra, begging her not to run away. "I'm sorry, Catra. I-I didn't mean to..."

But the fear Catra feels is different now.

It isn't like the fear of being pinned down and trapped. It's much, _much_ worse.

Because Adora is crumpled on the ground in pain.

And it's _her_ fault.

She staggers, glancing down at her own feet where bits of Adora's shirt art still stuck on her nails. She gasps in horror. She feels like she's going to throw up.

"A... Adora...?" She takes a step toward her, but Adora groans in pain again. Catra freezes, then slowly steps back. "I... I'm _sorry_ -" she rasps. "I-I didn't mean to, I-I just-" She turns with tears in her eyes, ashamed and terrified. She starts to run-

"Wait-!"

A tight hand on her wrist stops Catra in her tracks.

Adora had forced herself up to grab hold of her, because she knew if Catra ran away now, she'd never find her again. Adora keeps her other hand on her stomach because it still hurts, but she tries out a tiny smile.

"Catra... it's okay. It was an accident. I know you didn't mean to..."

Catra shakes her head and tries to yank herself away, but Adora holds tight.

"N-No! I hurt you! Lemme go!"

"I said it's okay!"

"It's _not_ okay!"

"Yes it is!"

They struggle against one another for a moment, but it's soon very clear that Catra is in much more pain than Adora is. Adora hardly even feels the stinging of the scratches anymore. But Catra is so ridden with guilt that she falls to her knees wailing.

"I... I'm sorry- I-I didn't-" She can't even speak anymore now. She just cries and hiccups and then cries some more.

Adora is relieved she isn't trying to run away anymore. Slowly, she drops to her knees beside her friend and wraps both arms around her.

"It's okay. I know it was an accident. It's my fault anyway for making you feel trapped. I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry, too..."

Catra can't do anything more than cling to her and wail. Adora's never heard her voice go this loud before. It echoes through the corridors loudly enough to draw other people's attention.

And it draws the attention of the last person they want right now.

" _What_ is going on here?"

Shadow-Weaver's tone sends shudders up the girls' backs, particularly Catra's. She yelps, trying to hide by clinging to Adora. Adora hugs her and looks up as calmly as she can as Shadow-Weaver lurks toward them.

"What is all the fuss about?" she demands, glaring down at Catra. " _Silence_ , child!"

Catra chokes, trying to keep down as much of the sobbing as she can, but it just keep tumbling out. Adora holds her close, but never takes her eyes off the sorceress.

"Shadow-Weaver, it was an accident-"

" _What_ was an accident? What did the little cur do?" Her bleak eyes narrow in on Adora. She must see the frays of her shirt past Catra's huddled form, because Shadow-Weaver reaches out and snatches the back of Catra's shirt.

Catra wails and Adora tries to hold onto her, but Shadow-Weaver yanks the girl off Adora and throws her to the ground. When she glimpses the torn shirt on her precious future cadet, Shadow-Weaver becomes livid. She inches closer to Adora and rests a gentle hand on her head. But her voice is heavy with rage and fury.

"Did _she_ do this to you, my dear Adora? That little mongrel? Because I can see to it that she never harms you again." Shadow-Weaver raises her other hand, which starts to glow red.

The same aura suddenly appears around Catra as the sobbing girl is lifted slowly into the air by the dark magics. Catra gasps and cries, but she's too terrified to make any other sounds. Her frightened, tearful eyes can only seek out Adora and cry for help her mouth can't ask for.

Adora frantically tries to persuade Shadow-Weaver.

"P-Please! It wasn't her fault! She didn't mean to!"

Shadow-Weaver tightens her fist, and Catra yelps. The sorceress pulls Adora close to her side more tenderly, though her voice is still acidic.

"I always _knew_ that one would be nothing but a nuisance. I should have gotten rid of her right away. I suppose that was my mistake."

"Please!" Adora cries. "Y-You're hurting her!"

"Only because _she_ hurt _you_ , my dear." Shadow-Weaver strokes her fingers gently through Adora's hair. And in contrast she increases Catra's pain with the other.

Adora clings desperately to the sorceress' robes.

"Please... It doesn't hurt anymore, Shadow-Weaver. She won't do it again. Please let her go..."

Shadow-Weaver is unmoving and cold for a moment. Adora feels tears rushing down her cheeks as she watches Catra struggle in silent agony.

But at last, Shadow-Weaver releases her. Catra drops to the ground, and Adora hurries over to her without a second thought.

"Catra!" Adora scoops the girl up into her arms. There are tears all down her face and neck, but she's quiet now, passed out from the sheer terror of it all. Adora hugs her close and doesn't let go. She cries softly into her hair. But she makes sure to listen to Shadow-Weaver's parting words of warning.

"You may keep her around so long as you keep her under control. But if she ever does anything like this again, I _won't_ hesitate to get rid of her." She pauses, and for a second, the shadows seem to stir and shift when they shouldn't.

"I won't allow anything to get in the way of your training to become Force Commander one day, Adora. Do keep that in mind. You're going to do great things, my dear. And I will see to it myself."

With this she turns and vanishes as hauntingly as she'd come.

Adora curls herself over Catra and sobs. She'd never been in so much pain before. And none of it is because of her stomach anymore.

 _This_ pain is so much worse. The pain of caring about someone so much.

She holds Catra close to her, not knowing if she can hear her or not.

"I'll protect you... I promise..."

She's going to make sure it's a promise she can keep.

* * *

 **A/N: Yes, unfortunately we can't have baby Catra and Adora without Shadow-Weaver sliding in every now and again to scare them, now can we? This chapter was more of a "first time they hurt each other" kind of chapter. I imagine something like this could've happened in canon, especially if Catra was scared and not thinking about using her claws.**

 **The next chapter will be the last one of them as babies, and then we'll move into Part 2!**

 **Please review!**


	4. The Chasm Of Shadows

**Believe me, I'm very guilt-ridden in leaving the previous chapter off like that. I hate having to think about these poor babies hurt as they are now in canon, let alone when they were actual babies.**

 **This will be their first 'argument'. Sort of. You'll see.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

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Chapter 4. The Chasm Of Shadows

Adora scoops Catra into her arms and carries her back to the bedrooms that evening. Even though one of the adults informs her of a proper new bed that had been set up for Catra, Adora lies the girl down in her bed, the one they'd shared the night before. As Adora tries to make sure she's comfortable, she asks the caretakers to bring them some water.

Catra's new bed is right next to Adora's, but the space between their mattresses seems awfully big. For now though, Adora just stays by her side, too upset for supper, and not wanting to leave her side for a second.

When the water is brought to them, she thanks the man, who seems rather unsympathetic about Catra's condition. Adora leaves the bottle at the foot of the bed for now and tries to adjust the blankets and pillows for Catra's comfort. She knows she doesn't like being underneath the blankets that much, so Adora only pulls them up to cover Catra's legs. She carefully turns her friend's head for her so she won't put too much weight on her hair or one of her ears.

Adora sniffles for a while longer, and she reaches out to wipe as many of Catra's drying tears away as well. She still can't erase the image of her, suspended in the air, terrified beyond words as Shadow-Weaver threatened her.

Adora had always known Shadow-Weaver to be tougher on other kids than she was on Adora herself, but she'd _never_ been this ruthless before.

 _It's because she loves me so much,_ she reminds herself. _She just doesn't want me to get hurt. But I wish she wouldn't hurt other people to keep me safe. Especially not Catra..._

When Adora looks at her now, Catra looks even smaller than usual. The mattress seems too big for her, and the pillow seems to swallow her up. Her skin is a bit paler than usual too, and she keeps making little whimpering noises in her sleep.

Adora stays by her side for a while, only leaving for a moment to grab a clean shirt from the laundry stacks under her own bed. She changes out of the torn t-shirt, peeking beneath the under-shirt to find a few red marks on her skin. But they're already beginning to heal, and they don't hurt anymore.

She puts on her clean shirt and tosses the other into the trash; neither of them need the reminder of this scary day.

Adora returns to Catra's bedside and sits on the edge. She notices Catra's hand twitching slightly, her nails curling into the sheets before loosening and repeating.

Adora doesn't care if she gets scratched again. She reaches for Catra's hand right away and holds it gently, running her thumb over the back. Catra's fingers squeeze back a tiny bit. Adora lies herself down and curls up next to her.

"Sorry..."

She doesn't know why she feels like she should be apologizing, but she just does. Nothing that happened was either of their faults, but Adora just feels responsible somehow. Seeing Catra so scared and hurt was the worst feeling Adora had ever known. She doesn't ever want to see her that way ever again.

She stays by her side, holding her hand and snoozing for a while. Only when other children begin running into the room and changing for bed does Adora realize how late it's gotten. She isn't hungry for supper tonight. She just wants to stay here with Catra.

Before she knows it, lights have gone out, save for a few lanterns at the doorways. The usual nighttime chatter of the other children dwindles away as sounds of snoring rise up instead.

But Adora still can't bring herself to sleep. She's too worried about Catra.

It's a chilly night, so Adora presses close to her friend, still holding onto her hand. She feels Catra's fingers twitch again, and this time they give a full squeeze back.

Adora sits up just as Catra's eyes flutter open, blinking blearily up at the dark ceiling. In only seconds, Adora can see the fear creeping into them, so she gives her hand another squeeze and calls out softly to her.

"Catra? Hey, it's okay..."

The girl's ears flick up, and then flatten as her eyes turn to Adora. She gasps softly and yanks her hand away. Catra sits up quickly and begins scrambling away from her.

"N-No-" She lashes her tail, eyes wide and scared. "No-"

"C-Catra, wait!" Adora crawls after her, grabbing onto her wrist before she can fall back off the edge of the bed. "Calm down! It's okay! Shadow-Weaver isn't here. She won't hurt you anymore."

" _No_ -!" Catra hisses for the first time since Adora had met her. Tears start to run down her face again, just like before. "Let me go!"

Catra wrenches herself free of Adora's grasp and jumps back, landing sloppily on the floor on her hands and knees. She must recognize the other new bed as hers, because she climbs up into it and curls into a tight ball, giving Adora her back. She shudders and cries quietly, refusing to look at her.

Adora is at a loss. Her heart hurts. Maybe Catra is too scared to be with her now because she's scared of Shadow-Weaver.

Adora moves slowly to the edge of her bed. The space between hers and Catra's seems like a big dark chasm of shadows. She shivers in the cold and pulls up her blanket around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry..." Her voice is tiny and cracked. Adora feels more tears coming down her face. "I-I'm sorry... she only hurt you... because of _me_..."

She clings onto the blankets, but keeps shivering anyway. She can tell Catra is too. She's still huddled up and shaking, from the cold and from the tears. Her tail starts to lash against the mattress. Adora is upset to think she's made Catra even sadder, or possibly angry. She sniffles, wipes her eyes, and bows her head.

"I'm sorry, Catra..."

The room is quiet for a moment, save for the sounds of other kids snoring. But Adora hears Catra's voice clearly.

"Stop it..."

Adora flinches.

"Huh...?"

Suddenly, Catra shoots up from where she'd been curled and whirls around to face her. And her eyes are streaming with tears so miserable it makes Adora's stomach hurt.

"I said stop it!" Catra wails. "Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong! _I'm_ the one who hurt you! The old hag was right! It's _my_ fault! She should've hurt me more because... because _I'm_ the one who hurt you first!"

The tears fall faster, and she bows her head under the weight of her guilt. Her ears droop all the way, and her nails dig into the sheets.

"I... _I'm_ the one who's sorry... After you were so nice to me... I just hurt you... I'm the worst..."

Adora has never heard her talk so much all at once, but she hates that it's now. She hates that she finally gets to hear her voice, and it's for something like this. It's thick from crying and raspy from guilt, and all the words just cause Catra more pain.

Adora is only glad that Catra wasn't mad at or scared of her. But she still won't accept this either.

"Catra..." Adora inches to the edge of her bed. "It wasn't your fault. It was an accident. And I know that. I accept your apology, and it's okay. I promise."

Those two words cause Catra to flinch, but she slowly lifts her face again.

Adora reaches her hand out across that wide chasm between their beds. She wants to go to her, but Adora knows that won't change anything. Catra might just run away from her again if she still feels too ashamed.

She needs Catra to decide to come to her. Like when they'd first met. She wants Catra to make a move, too.

So Adora waits with her hand outstretched in the cold.

Even when her arm starts to shake, she doesn't withdraw it. She waits, letting Catra take all the time she needs.

Catra just keeps crying. Every once in a while she peeks up, but she can't seem to bring herself to look at Adora fully. She keeps apologizing, and Adora keeps responding gently.

"I'm sorry..."

"It's okay. It wasn't your fault."

"I hurt you..."

"It was an accident."

"I don't deserve to stay with you..."

That's the one that makes Adora wince.

"Of course you do, Catra. I wanna keep being with you. We're best friends, remember? We're gonna be Force Cadets, and Captains, and Commanders together, right? I still wanna be with you, Catra. I always will."

Catra wipes her face as the crying gradually dies down. She lifts her head in the darkness, eyes glinting.

"Do... Do you promise...?"

Adora cracks a small, toothy grin.

"Yeah. I promise, Catra."

She reaches her hand out a little farther.

Catra doesn't budge. She looks her over carefully, as if she still can't believe Adora is real, or that she still wants to be her friend after what Catra had done. She curls her tail around herself, shivering in the cold darkness.

But Adora is warm. Catra wants to stay with her, too.

Adora's been waiting for her all this time.

Slowly, Catra lifts her hand, finding her fingers quivering. She retracts her claws as much as she can before reaching out to her.

She almost recoils a few times, because images of Shadow-Weaver and echoes of her booming voice flash through Catra's head.

She doesn't want to make her angry. She doesn't want to hurt Adora. All she wants is to feel warm and safe by her side forever.

And even though Catra had hurt her, Adora doesn't care. She still wants it, too. She still wants _Catra_.

Now Catra's tears fall for a different reason. She sniffs and whimpers as she reaches for that hand; the same hand that had been offered to her when she'd first arrived here, the hand that hadn't forced or trapped her, but had let Catra make her own decision.

She's chosen now. And she chooses Adora.

Catra reaches for her until the sharp tips of her nails brush gently over the soft pads of Adora's fingers.

But Adora never flinches or frowns. In fact, her smile only gets bigger. She's so happy Catra has chosen her, too.

She waits until Catra has moved her hand a little closer, until Adora can get a firm grip on her. She smiles and nods, then gives a slight tug. Catra smiles back.

As Adora pulls her, she leaps from her bed, clearing the chasm of shadows without touching them. Catra lands softly and safely in Adora's arms.

They roll back together in a tangle of arms and hair and blankets. The tears come to a stop, and the sobbing is exchanged for soft giggles.

Adora wraps her arms around Catra tightly. The other girl had been shivering alone on her bed without any blankets all this time, and Adora can feel the chill coming off her skin and clothes. But even in spite of all that, Catra is very warm.

And it's the same for her. Catra snuggles into Adora's warmth, breathing in her familiar scent, hugging her back. But she stops herself from clinging too tightly.

Adora can tell she's holding back. Catra's still shivering against her, and Adora knows she wants to be closer, but she doesn't want to hurt her again. Adora smiles and pulls her in, covering the distance Catra was too nervous to close.

"It's okay," she murmurs. "You don't have to hold back. Hug me as tight as you want, Catra! Cuz that's what I'm gonna do!" With this, she squeezes Catra to her with all her might, nestling her face into her messy black hair, brushing her cheek against the soft fur of her ear.

Catra tenses up for a second, but Adora doesn't relent.

And eventually Catra doesn't feel scared anymore. So she hugs her back like Adora had asked her to, sinking her claws into her shirt and balling her fists up before they can touch skin.

Catra presses herself as close as she can, hiding her face in Adora's shoulder. She starts to cry again, but it doesn't hurt this time.

Adora pulls the blankets up over Catra's shuddering back, making sure they aren't too tight, but just snug enough to keep away the cold air. She feels that familiar tail slipping across her side beneath the covers. It curls around her back and tries to bring Adora even closer.

Catra hugs her and cries until there are no tears left. Adora pets her hair and her back, and even scratches her ears a little bit.

Catra wants to relax and go to bed with her. But as she eases away, her eyes go down to Adora's stomach. Even though the torn shirt had been exchanged, she knows there must still be scratches underneath this one. Catra blinks up at her friend in the darkness and sniffles again.

"Adora... does it hurt...?"

Adora slides one of her hands down Catra's arm until she can find her hand. She loops their pinky fingers together.

"Nope. I promise."

"Do you... still wanna be my friend?"

"I do. I promise."

"Will you... stay with me... no matter what...?"

"I will. _I promise_."

Catra whimpers and gives a little squeeze back with her own pinky.

"I promise, too... I... I promise I'll try not to hurt you anymore. I promise I'll stay with you and be your friend no matter what. I'll really really try. I promise, Adora..."

Adora feels a wave of something warm and cozy in her chest.

"Thank you, Catra. Thank you for coming here, for being with me, and for being my best friend." She moves back a little until she can see Catra's different-colored eyes clearly. "And just remember; it doesn't matter what bad things happen. It doesn't matter what Shadow-Weaver or anyone else does to us. We'll have each other's backs. We'll look out for each other. Cuz that's what friends do." Adora bumps her nose gently against hers. "You'll always have me, Catra. I promise."

Catra can't think of what to say back. She's too happy for words. So she just nuzzles into Adora's cheek, letting her own scent rub off on her, hugging her as hard as she can. She doesn't ever want to let go. She can only hope Adora won't let her go either.

The two girls keep close that night, cuddled up warmly beneath the blankets and in each other's arms.

And they wake as they'd slept last night – together.

And they eat breakfast together.

And they play and train together.

And they bathe and eat supper together.

And they go back to sleep together.

For many many days and nights, they repeat the process.

Until one whole year has passed.

And then two.

And then three...

* * *

 **A/N: One of the toughest parts of this fic to write is having baby Adora justify Shadow-Weaver's abusive actions, simply because she doesn't know any better :(**

 **Of course the reasoning for this chapter title is not only their overcoming the shadowy space between the beds, but symbolically, Shadow-Weaver. So they hope.**

 **This concludes the first arc of the story! The next several chapters will follow Adora and Catra when they are several years older!**

 **Please review!**


	5. Special Catch

**Okay! So now we're having our first timeskip of 6 years. Catra and Adora will now be pre-teens as shown in their sparring matches in the canon.**

 **This "first" is going to be one everyone will recognize from the canon ;3**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

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Chapter 5. Special Catch

It's six years later when Catra and Adora finally become official cadets of the Horde. It hadn't been particularly easy, but one thing is for sure; it was definitely much more fun than it would have been to become cadets without ever knowing one another.

Their six years together had consisted of mostly training, along with a few occasional mishaps of getting on Shadow-Weaver's nerves.

But after meeting each other, they'd never had to face the sorceress alone ever again. As promised, they looked out for one another, even at such young ages, and all the way until now.

Catra and Adora were about eleven years old when they passed their physical and written exams to become cadets. They were assigned to be on a team together with Lohnie, Kyle, and Rogelio, who had all grown closer over the years.

All of the hyperactive children that had once scampered all across the Fright Zone's base were now energetic pre-teens fueled by the promise of one day becoming potential Force Captains. Everyone had grown a little taller, hair had grown longer, voices had deepened just a bit - all gradual and somewhat minor changes.

But there's one person who's changed much more than all the others – at least in Adora's eyes.

No one else had been close enough to Catra – in a physcial, spiritual, or emotional sense – to notice her gradual change over time.

Only Adora recognized the very first time Catra started talking a little bit more, and a little bit louder, or when she started smiling a little more often, or when she told her first joke, or did outgoing things that her past timid self never would have dreamed of doing.

Adora noticed everything about the girl who had become her best friend.

Catra had gotten a bit taller like the rest of them, though Adora still had an inch or two on her. She'd gotten more feisty both verbally and physically, and she wasn't afraid to leap headfirst into a fight.

She wasn't afraid of anything anymore, other than Shadow-Weaver.

She tried to hide it, but whenever the sorceress came around, Catra would freeze up and clam up, or only offer mumbled words in response to her. But that was understandable, and Adora was always there with her to help sooth the typically-agitated sorceress until she was satisfied and let them be.

But in just about every other department, Catra's personality and liveliness had blossomed.

Adora had absolutely loved being able to watch her climb out of her shell one step at a time.

But sometimes she almost wished Catra would take a step back.

Sometimes. Almost.

Like on mornings like this one when Adora hasn't even opened her eyes yet, but she can already feel the piercing yellow and blue gaze boring into the backs of her eyelids, and she can hear the faint rumblings of an excited purr. Adora groans softly and turns over in her bed, pulling her pillow over her head.

"Catra, please... just five more minutes..."

"That's what you said five minutes ago!"

"No, but I actually mean it this time."

"Adora-"

"All right, all right, fine! Just please don't pounce on me again."

Adora lets her pillow fall back onto the mattress as she rolls over once more and finally opens her eyes. Catra is already dressed and waiting, eyes bright and tail swishing. She purrs a little louder as soon as she sees Adora's eyes. Adora sighs but smiles.

Since becoming Force Cadets, everyone had been given new sleeping quarters. They were now in a larger room and had been given bunk beds. Catra and Adora had marked the walls of them right away with grinning doodles of themselves side by side.

Adora had opted for a lower bunk while Catra had unofficially claimed the one above it. But needless to say she never used it, and instead opted to curl up at the foot of Adora's bed, or on particularly cold nights she'd sleep pressed right up against Adora beneath the blankets.

And Adora can feel the slight chill in the air now as she shifts around on her mattress and the blankets fall away from her arms.

Catra is still waiting eagerly with a spark in her eyes, tail swishing. Adora clears her throat and sighs again.

"All right, fine. C'mere, you." With a hopeless smile, she opens her arms invitingly.

Catra's purr bubbles all the way up her throat as she all but flops herself down onto Adora's chest. Adora swallows down the grunt and instead wraps both arms around her friend, draping the blankets over Catra for the time being. She can feel Catra's skin and the fur of her ears is a little cold, which makes Adora wonder how long she'd been up for, just sitting there watching her.

That was one thing that hadn't changed much about Catra over the years. She was still hesitant to ask for things – at least with Adora. She'd gotten gutsy enough to cut on line in the mess hall to get the last tuna sandwich, or speak out of turn to their commanding officers when she had a bone to pick about one thing or another. But when she was alone with Adora like this, she still held herself back sometimes.

Adora curls both arms around her now and rubs her hands over Catra's back and shoulders as the vibrations of her purr rumble between their chests.

"Y'know," she begins. "If you're cold, you don't have to wait, Catra. Just come over here whenever you want, even if I'm asleep."

"Hmm, but it's no fun unless I get to see your reaction and hear you talk when you still sound like a frog in the morning."

"Catra, I'm serious."

"So am I."

Adora just sighs again. Another thing that had changed about Catra is how stubborn she can be, and how good she is at arguing.

Adora had at least gotten her point made, so she lets the conversation drop for now. She adjusts her hold on Catra a bit, feeling the familiar pat of a tail tapping on her waist. And the purr radiates all across her body, even though she isn't even the one producing it.

She's glad Catra had learned how to unashamedly let it out. Catra might not always express her feelings with words, but she's never failed to with the noises she'd made upon meeting Adora that very first day. She'll still hiss and growl and whine - mostly at others - but when she's alone with Adora, it was just about always the purr.

And Adora's very glad for it. She loves being able to _feel_ and _hear_ just how content Catra is. The pleasant rumbling fills her every breath to the fullest, sometimes so much so that she ends up sputtering from how hard she's purring.

In the early-morning hours before anyone else is even awake, Adora doesn't mind it one bit. She listens to her favorite sound as Catra's warmth spreads across her body along with the little vibrations. Adora closes her eyes again and just breathes with her, wishing she could purr back and express how content she is too.

But she feels Catra knows. Catra always knows.

They laze about in their new bed together for a while, drifting in and out of consciousness. Adora dreads when the wake-up calls will come. But for now she just focuses on the moment, on the feeling of Catra's warmth pressed against her, of the rumble of her purr and the faint beat of her heart...

And then in a split second everything stops. Catra tenses up with a gasp, and the purr stops abruptly, though Adora can still feel her heart, and it's racing. Catra lifts her head up sharply, ears shooting tall. Adora blinks open her eyes just in time to see them twitch.

"Mm, Catra? What's the matter?"

" _Shh!_ Did you hear that?"

"To be honest, it was kind of hard to hear _anything_ with how loud you were purring..."

Catra sits herself up, letting the blankets fall away. Her ears are taller than Adora's ever seen them before, and her tail has begun to lash. Adora sits up beside her a little nervously.

"Catra? Are you okay?"

"Shh! There's something-" She stops talking with a jolt, as if someone has given her a shock.

Adora doesn't know what to make of her behavior. In all the years she's known Catra and all her little oddities, she's never seen her act like this before. Adora reaches out tentatively to put a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Catra, I think you should lie back down."

But Catra rounds on her silently, letting out a soft snort before pulling away from her hand. She drops off the side of the bed and lands on all fours, then begins prowling across the floor. Adora calls after her in a whisper.

"Catra! What are you doing?"

Everyone else is still asleep, so Adora doesn't want to go running after Catra to drag her back to bed. Catra is normally quiet and light enough on her feet not to disturb anyone, but Adora has no idea what she's doing right now, and she's more than a little concerned.

She watches her in the dim lighting as Catra crawls across the floor, sometimes pausing sharply and hiding behind a bed. Adora tries to whisper-scream at her.

"Catra! What is going on?!"

Catra flicks an ear, so Adora knows she heard her, but she doesn't respond. She just keeps her keen eyes focused on whatever it is she's looking for.

She creeps forward with every shred of stealth and care she'd been culminating in her training all these years, enough to let Adora know this is something serious. She can't see much beyond Catra's form and her lashing tail, but it's making her even more nervous.

Slowly, she removes her blankets and begins to slide her legs off over the edge of the mattress, intending to follow her.

"Catra-"

But before Adora can get another word out, it's too late. Catra wiggles her hips and whips her tail in excitement before launching herself forward with a yowl.

"Ha!"

She buries herself beneath Lohnie's bed, and of course the commotion rouses her, and several other cadets.

"What the-?!" Lohnie scrambles up in her bed and raises her fists, ready for a fight until she notices the tail beneath her bed. " _Catra?_ What the heck is goin' on? Get away from my bed!"

"What's going on?"

"What's all the noise?"

"Come on, we still have a few minutes..."

As other moans and groans start filling the room, Adora winces, knowing she'll have to take some responsibility for her partner's actions. Sure enough, Lohnie glares across the room right at her.

"Adora, would you come get your stupid friend _away_ from my bed?"

"Uh, r-right. I'll get her..."

At the very least, now that everyone else has started to wake up, Adora doesn't feel so uneasy about... whatever is happening. She stands up fully and begins making her way over to Lohnie's bed and Catra's flicking tail.

"Catra, come on. Whatever you're doing-"

"I got it!" Catra's triumphant declaration echos through the room, effectively serving to wake up anyone who wasn't already disturbed by the commotion. As Catra squirms her way out from under the bed, Adora puts a palm to her face and sighs.

"Catra, what are you-"

"Here! See?"

"I d- _aaaaah?!_ " Adora scrambles back as soon as her brain registers what Catra's just shoved in her face. Catra's holding a tiny, squirming mouse by the tip of its tail.

And though she'd nearly given Adora a heart-attack, and half the other cadets a rude awakening, Catra herself is absolutely beaming with pride. Her eyes are sparkling, her ears are tall and excited, her tail is curling with delight, and her purr radiates more loudly through the room than all of the groaning combined.

Adora takes a second to understand exactly what's happened here this morning before heaving another almighty sigh.

"A mouse..."

"Yeah! I _knew_ I heard something crawling around in here! Thought you were being sneaky, didn't cha?" Catra holds the mouse up between her eyes and narrows them threateningly. "You're not so smart. Just try to steal our food, you little-"

"All right!" Lohnie interrupts. "Would ya can it?"

"Hey!" Catra snaps. "You should be thanking me! I saved your life! If this thing had bitten you, you could've gotten infected with something! Right, Adora?" Catra turns back to her partner and shoves the swaying mouse into her face again. Adora stumbles back.

"C-Catra, could you stop _swinging_ it around?"

"What should we do with it?" Catra tosses the mouse into her other hand and pinches the tail between her claws. As other kids look up to see it, they shout a few disgusted ideas.

"Gross! Kill it!"

"Throw it in the furnace!"

"I have an idea," Lohnie interjects. "Maybe you two lovebirds can share it for a romantic breakfast."

"What?! Ew! I'm not gonna eat a _mouse!_ " Catra snaps.

And Adora ends up smiling a little bit, because she's happy that the part of the statement that had grossed Catra out was the idea of eating the mouse, not the idea of sharing a romantic meal with her.

But Catra's started to bristle as the other cadets begin getting up to mutter about the situation. So Adora steps closer, carefully avoiding the mouse dangling between them, and puts a hand on Catra's shoulder.

"I have a better idea. Come on."

Adora takes her partner's unoccupied hand and begins leading her out of the dormitory, down the quieter hallway. She's still a little flustered about everything, but more than anything she's relieved nothing serious had happened to cause Catra to act so oddly. As she casts a glance back over her shoulder, her partner is still beaming at her catch.

"Maybe we can keep it. Y'know, as a pet?"

"Somehow I don't think that's going to fly."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." But she keeps smiling as she inspects her prize.

Adora can't help but smile too. Because all of the other cadets had suggested to harm or kill the mouse, which is probably a typical or expected response from a Horde member.

But Catra had only suggested to keep it alive. And Adora isn't quite sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing that she appreciates her partner's softheartedness. And that's exactly why she wants to get this sorted out before someone ruthless like Shadow-Weaver comes along and settles things in a brutal manner right before their eyes.

Adora quickens her pace as she leads Catra to the nearest exit, having Catra show the mouse to the guards so they can understand what it is the girls are doing. They let them pass, and the pair steps outside into the cold gray morning. Adora sighs again before turning back to her.

"All right. You can let him go."

Catra's smile fades for just a second before she shrugs.

"Yeah. Guess you're right." She crouches down, and Adora goes with her. But before Catra can let go of the mouse she turns back to her with a grin. "You sure you don't wanna keep it?"

"I'm pretty sure."

"Suit yourself."

Catra places the mouse down gently onto its four little paws, then releases her grip on its tail. It runs off immediately into the shadows.

The two girls are quiet for a moment. Catra's oddly proud of making her first catch, but a little bitter to have let it go.

And Adora quietly revels in her partner's kind nature. She gives a squeeze to Catra's hand and leans over to bump their shoulders together.

"Thanks for the offer, though."

"Huh? What are you going on about?"

"Well, when you first caught it, you turned around and tried to give it to me, right?"

Catra's ears swivel and flatten as her face turns pink.

"I... I mean, that's normal, right? You're my partner. Of course you were the first person on my mind. I dunno, I just felt like I should give it you for some reason..." Catra tapers off mumbling under her breath.

But even if she doesn't fully understand her own actions, Adora appreciates them nonetheless. For Catra to have been so excited about using her skills to hunt that mouse down and successfully capture it, only to offer it to Adora...

It was touching. Sort of.

Either way, it made her feel happy that Catra would think of her as the person deserving of such a special prize.

Adora bumps their shoulders again.

"Thanks, partner."

"What are you doing? You didn't even keep it."

"I know. But thanks anyway."

"Whatever," Catra rolls her eyes. "Let's just go back inside. I'm starving." She stands and pulls Adora up with her. Adora smiles and squeezes her hand back.

And though Catra would never admit it, Adora could hear her purring all the way back.

* * *

 **A/N: "That was _one time!"_ As soon as I got the idea for this "first times" fic I knew I had to do the First Mouse incident, haha. **

**I enjoyed writing this chapter and describing how Catra might've changed over the years, from the scared taciturn little girl to someone a bit more confident and outgoing. I think Shadow-Weaver would still be her only concern, but she'd be much more expressive otherwise. Baby steps!**

 **Please review!**


	6. A Hard Hit

**This is a bit of a different concept, but one I got the idea for somehow and I decided to roll with it!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

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Chapter 6. A Hard Hit

When Adora woke up that morning, she could instantly tell something was off with Catra.

For starters, her partner was usually up and active – sometimes annoyingly so – long before Adora was.

But today, as Adora sits up and stretches her arms up above her head, Catra remains curled at the foot of the bed. Her twitching tail indicates she's awake, but for whatever reason she hasn't sat up or spoken to her yet. Adora clears her throat and treads carefully.

"Catra? Is something wrong?"

She _knows_ something is wrong. It's just a matter of if Catra will tell her or not. And judging by how stubborn she can be sometimes-

"No."

Adora isn't surprised by her answer.

She sighs. She should've known Catra was going to play a hard game.

"Then why haven't you gotten up yet? Are you feeling sick?" She crawls down to where Catra is balled up, hiding her face in her arms. Adora nudges her and rolls her over a little so she can press a hand onto her forehead. But Catra swipes her away immediately.

"I'm not sick! Only weaklings get sick!"

"Everyone gets sick, Catra. We're all a little weak from time to time. It's okay."

"I told you I'm _not_ sick."

"Then what's the matter?"

Catra hisses softly as she pushes herself up, eyes narrowed, ears flat, and tail lashing. She looks into Adora's eyes briefly, but quickly looks away.

"It hurts..."

"Huh?" Adora goes into panic mode right away. "What does? What hurts?"

"...My mouth."

"...Your _mouth_...?" Adora parrots. "Why does your _mouth_ hurt?"

"If I _knew_ that, don't you think I'd be doing something about it?"

"Right. Sorry."

At the very least, a bit of Adora's tension fades away. There were plenty of other things that could've been hurting Catra that would have been a lot more worrisome. But of course even this much pain is too much, and she wants to help her however she can.

She reaches out slowly, asking permission with her eyes. Catra shrugs and looks away. Adora cradles both hands gently on either side of Catra's jaw, rubbing her fingers softly.

"Does this hurt?"

But on the contrary, Catra lets out a tiny purr before she can get control of herself.

"No. It's up here..." She raises her chin to indicate her upper teeth.

Adora can't see much from her angle, but she can't see any blood or anything else out of place. But it does looks as if one of Catra's fangs is slightly crooked.

As Adora gathers information for her assessment, Catra has started to become flustered. Her face heats up and she can't stop the purr from forming. The soft pressure of Adora's hands on her face feels nice, but she doesn't want to let her _know_ that.

Unfortunately for Catra, the purr comes without her consent sometimes, and she can't exactly stop it now.

But luckily for her, Adora is finished with her diagnosis. With a smile, she leans forward to rest her forehead against Catra's.

"I think you're gonna be fine. It's probably just a loose tooth."

"What?" Catra's purr gets tangled in her throat and she coughs. "I lost all my teeth already! We both have, remember? We kept track."

"But you never lost your fangs."

"I don't think I _can_ ," Catra grumbles.

"Why not? They're teeth too."

Catra pulls herself away.

"Well, yeah, but..." She hunches her shoulders and looks down into her lap. Adora slides up next to her and lightly bumps shoulders with her.

"Let's just take it easy today. It'll work itself out eventually."

Catra heaves a sigh, but relents.

So the two of them get dressed and ready for the day as the other cadets begin waking.

While they're brushing their teeth in the bathroom, Adora notes Catra is going very slowly and stiffly. When they go to breakfast, they're served gruel with bread and fruit. Catra can only manage the soupy liquid and a few small berries. She doesn't say much either, which leads Adora to believe her mouth is bothering her a lot more than she's letting on.

She just has to hope that whatever training they're doing today with their commander won't be too intense. Hopefully they'd be studying up on the rebellion princesses, or honing their tracking skills.

But of course, once they've made their way to the barracks, the first two words out of their commander's mouth other than the obligatory, "Good morning, cadets" is "Combat practice!"

Adora flinches, and when she looks to Catra she can tell her partner isn't thrilled about the training for the first time in her life. Adora keeps her voice low so no one else can hear.

"Y'know, if you tell him you're hurt, he won't make you do it."

"I'm not hurt. I'm fine. I don't need to sit out and skip practice like some pansy just because my tooth is sore."

"I mean, you might wanna consider it if just _walking_ makes you flinch."

Catra flattens her ears, taking offense.

"I told you, I'm not some weakling!"

"I never said-"

"All right!" their commander bellows. "Get to it, cadets! Pair off and we'll start the matches."

Catra flashes her a glare, but turns away from Adora.

"You'd just go easy on me."

And with that she crosses the room to talk to Lohnie, who seems eager to accept Catra as her partner.

Adora sighs more at herself than at Catra. She should've known she'd get defensive about it.

 _I should've been a bit more subtle..._

She just has to hope things will go smoothly.

Everyone puts on their chest pieces, which double as both armor and buzzers for the simulation. Head shots were prohibited, so the only way to knock out your opponent was a solid blow to the center of the chest until the light flashed red.

With Kyle paired with Rogelio, Adora is out of teammates to match with, so she's partnered with a conceited boy who's known to be a decent fighter. But when their match commences and they draw their bo staffs, Adora has him on the floor within seconds. It was almost too easy.

She walks back to the sidelines to observe the next match, humbly accepting all the praise her commander is giving. It makes her realize it's been a long time since she'd versed anyone but Catra.

Of course it was good to switch things up from time to time so you wouldn't get used to only one person's tendencies and mannerisms. But no one else was quite as skilled a fighter as Catra, in her opinion.

Though Lohnie was a fair match for sure.

The two of them are called up next, drawing their bos to face one another. Adora isn't sure if it's on purpose or not, but Catra catches her eye. Adora smiles. Catra just scoffs and quickly looks away.

Their commander calls out the regular phrases.

"Fighters ready? Begin!"

Instantly, Catra leaps forward for a strike, but Lohnie blocks at the last second and shoves her back. Adora doesn't miss it when Catra winces, but probably no one else notices.

Though she would rather have been the one to face Catra today, Adora has to admit it's important for her to simply watch her partner from another angle from time to time. She takes note of everything Catra does, and how she does it. How she crouches low and jumps high, how she lunges forward and springs back, how she uses her tail for balance and sometimes as a distraction to get her opponent looking elsewhere for a split second.

She tries that tactic now and it works. Lohnie's eyes are naturally drawn to the purposeful flash of Catra's tail, something few fighters have to use to their advantage. As she looks away, lured by the movement, Catra jumps in for a strike.

On reflex, Lohnie lifts her staff at an awkward angle and just barely manages to deflect the brunt of the hit. But her staff ends up swinging, and Catra had been so focused on her supposed victory she doesn't have enough time to react.

Adora can see it happening even before it happens, but there's nothing she can do. She just closes her eyes and whimpers.

"Oh no-"

Lohnie's staff slams hard against Catra's cheek, knocking her to the floor and sending her rolling. Even before the whistle blows to stop the match, Adora is already racing forward.

"Catra!"

The staff had been knocked from her hands and lies several feet away, but that isn't the only thing Adora sees. Dozens of droplets of crimson are smeared in a trail that leads straight to her partner.

Adora reaches her in seconds and drops down beside her, trying to help her up.

"Catra? Catra?" She pulls Catra into her lap and turns her over to find her covered in blood. Sure enough, the crooked fang is missing now, and in its place the blood is flowing freely, staining Catra's lips and teeth, dribbling down her chin and neck onto her clothes.

She coughs and sputters for breath, winded by the hard hit, her eyes barely open and ridden with pain. Adora quickly removes the armor piece from her chest to relieve some pressure and helps her sit up.

"Take it easy! Just breathe!"

Catra spits up more blood and puts a hand to her mouth.

"Ah-Adora-"

"I know. It hurts, doesn't it? I'm sorry." Adora holds her gently, rubbing Catra's chest and back for her in soothing circles. She can feel her hiccuping as tears start to fall. Adora's heart aches. "Try not to swallow the blood. You'll make yourself sick."

Catra sputters again, lifting her face just a little to look up at her fearfully.

"How... How bad is it...?"

"It's uh... well it could be worse...?" Adora smiles helplessly. Catra moans and buries her face in her hands.

By now someone has fetched a bag of ice and brought it to them, and Adora holds it lightly to her partner's mouth. Their commander keeps everyone else at bay and goes to the two girls, but Adora reassures him.

"It's okay. I've got her, sir."

He nods, then begins to order a cleanup.

Adora staggers to her feet with Catra and begins limping toward the bathrooms with her step by step. Once they get to the sink, Catra yelps at the sight of her bloodied face in the mirror. Adora helps clean her off a bit, having her rinse and spit out the blood until it's stopped flowing.

Eventually, Catra calms down enough, and the tears come to a halt. She wipes her face on a rag as Adora rubs her back softly.

"You okay now?"

Catra sniffles one last time and lifts her face.

"Yeah..."

When she speaks, Adora can see the difference in her mouth. The space where her fang had once been is very noticeably vacant. She brushes her fingers beneath Catra's chin and has her raise her head a little.

"Here, lemme see."

Catra stubbornly clamps her mouth shut. Adora sighs.

"Catra..."

Reluctantly, Catra opens her mouth.

There's still a bit of redness here and there, especially around the sore spot. But rather than a totally empty space where her fang should've been, Adora can already see a new one poking through. She grins.

"You're gonna be fine, Catra. There's a new one coming in, and it's gonna be even sharper and stronger than the last one!"

Catra closes her mouth.

"Really...?"

"Yeah!" Adora hugs her in relief. "I'm glad you're okay, Catra. Sorry for making you upset."

Catra grumbles guiltily under her breath.

"You don't have to apologize. It's my fault I-"

"Hey! Lovebirds!" As Lohnie's voice suddenly interrupts, Catra screeches and shoves Adora away from her, blushing red.

"We're _not_ lovebirds!"

Adora bites back a laugh before turning around to face her other teammate.

"Hi, Lohnie. You okay?"

"Yeah. I ain't the one who got nailed in the face and bled all over the floor. Just came in to say sorry. It wasn't on purpose."

Catra pouts and looks away.

"I know it wasn't..."

Lohnie and Adora share a smile.

"Also," Lohnie continues. "Thought I should give this back." She tosses over a crumpled-up tissue. Adora catches it and slowly unwraps it to reveal Catra's baby fang. Lohnie turns and waves on her way out. "Add it to your dumb little lovebird collection."

Adora turns back to Catra, who just shrugs and looks away. Adora giggles, then gets to washing off the old tooth until it's clean.

When they're ready, they head back to the dormitory briefly so Catra can change into a clean shirt. Adora heads to their bed and crouches underneath it to pull out a little box. Inside are all of the baby teeth she and Catra had lost over the years, cleaned and wrapped in little baggies. Adora adds the newest piece, closes the box, and puts it away again.

By now, Catra is dressed and ready to go back out, though Adora can't help but chuckle at the sight of her with one fang missing. Catra pouts again.

"Hey, you looked just as dumb when you lost yours!"

"I don't think you look dumb. You look cute, Catra!"

Catra's face turns bright red.

"Shut up! I do not!"

"You do, too!"

"Adora!"

"And just wait. You've still got one more fang to go, right?"

Catra grimaces at the thought.

"As long as it isn't as painful as _that_..."

Adora steps close to her and hugs her.

"I'm glad you're okay. I was really scared. That was a lot of blood for one tooth."

Catra hugs her back, but says nothing. A moment passes quietly. Adora eases back a little and looks into her eyes.

"Does it still hurt?"

"...Just a little."

"Then I know just the thing to help!"

Adora dips down and presses a tiny kiss to Catra's mouth.

It leaves Catra utterly stunned and unable to speak. Her fur bristles as her cheeks turn pinker, and her heart starts to do backflips.

This isn't the first time Adora's kissed her to make an injury better. It's just that, up until now it's been scrapes on her knees or hands or arms. This was the first time it had been her mouth.

It makes Catra's chest tingle in a way none of the other kisses ever had.

Adora smiles and brushes their noses together.

"Better?"

Catra won't ever let her know it's the best she's ever felt in her entire life.

"I guess..."

Adora giggles and takes her hand.

"C'mon. Let's go!"

She leads her back out, and Catra follows at her side. She has to wonder if Adora's heart is beating as quickly as hers is. But she can't get an answer just yet.

Catra lets out a soft rumbling purr as she squeezes her hand, and walks beside Adora like always.

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 **A/N: So this was first (mouth) kiss!**

 **I'm not too sure how to go about describing the inside of the Fright Zone camp and the commanders and other guards and cadets and whatnot. I'm just making stuff up that sounds like it could be feasible.**

 **Please review!**


	7. The Great Escape

**Still in the second timeskip part!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

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Chapter 7. The Great Escape

Over the months, Adora and Catra continue their training as cadets.

Not only are there various training regimes, scouting missions, and combat routines to go through daily under observation of their commanders, but also written exams they need to study for and pass.

Catra has always been better with the physical rather than the mental, so Adora always opts to help her study for the exams. By some miracle, Catra has managed to pass everything, even if just barely, while Adora's grades are top of her class.

But even though Catra may struggle a little with the written work, she excels higher than most with the sparring and combat simulations.

Sometimes they would fight against bots, sometimes other cadets of their level, and sometimes even senior cadets. Adora and Catra were some of the few to best seniors in their matches, which thoroughly impressed their commander and classmates.

As always, Adora kept a close eye on Catra in whatever the Horde had her do.

And for the most part, Catra had broken out of her shell in all regards except facing Shadow-Weaver. But given the circumstances, that was quite understandable.

What Adora noticed most, however, was Catra's frequent complaints about boredom. She was always groaning about "this simulation _again_?" or "can't I fight someone who would put up more of a fight?" or "can't we make this a little more _challenging?_ "

And although Adora never said these things aloud herself, she thought them too a good many times.

Those cadets who still had a lot to learn for their level were made to repeat courses they still had trouble with.

But those like Adora and Catra who excelled had already grown tired of it all.

They wanted more. They wanted to keep going. They wanted to go beyond the Fright Zone.

The desire for something _more_ had begun to kindle itself inside their souls a while ago, but only in recent weeks had it truly begun to unfold. It made them anxious to stay here, fearful of what they could be _missing_ beyond the crooked walls of the base camp.

They were hardly ever allowed to go outside for training. The few times they were granted such permission was only for scouting and tracking purposes, where they would be assigned a specific bot to either track or avoid for a certain amount of time, then their results would be recorded. But every time they were allowed out, they were always being observed one way or another, so they could never go far.

Recent days have had both girls more stir-crazy than ever, with the same old simulations and sparring exercises being offered in their training routines.

At the very least, Adora still went through everything without saying anything rude to the commanders. But Catra was another story.

"Oh, come _on_! Haven't we done this one, like, a million times?"

Though no one else would ever dare speak up like she did, they all had to admit they felt the same way. But their commanding officer merely shrugs and is flippant with his response.

"Then let's make it a million and one, Cadet."

"Uuugghh..." Fueled by her boredom, Catra turns to face the bot she'd been given to fight. She easily dodges the predictable blasts from its firearms, sidesteps and jumps back from its stabbing spider-like legs, and slips underneath it with ease to pull the correct wire to disable it. The bot twitches before collapsing and growing still. Catra stands next to it with her tail lashing and snorts.

"Ch. Too easy." She stalks back to the sidelines so the next person can have their turn. Adora makes room for her.

"Hey, good job."

"Yeah, yeah. I could do this crap with my eyes closed."

"I know it's getting kinda redundant, but we shouldn't complain. It just means we're ahead of the game for our level. Once we get to junior and senior cadet level, the training will be a lot harder and a lot more suited to our skills."

Catra just grunts.

"Whatever. I just wanna get out of here. It's so dumb to think that the _mouse_ we found a few months ago gets to go farther into the world than _we_ do." She crosses her arm, slumps against the wall, and says nothing more.

They watch other cadets of their level in the same simulation. Most of them struggle against the bot, and only a few manage to disable it, though none as quickly as Catra or Adora had.

By the time training is finished for the day, Catra is yawning. Adora ruffles her hair.

"C'mon. Let's go get some supper."

Like clockwork, they eat, bathe, and get ready for bed. It's a bit of a warmer evening, so Catra stays at the foot of the mattress. She grooms herself for a few minutes, alternating between half-heartedly pulling a comb through her mess of hair or licking the fur of her tail a few times.

Adora can tell she's brooding though. As she brushes through her own hair, an idea begins creeping its way into her head...

Lights out is called, and the room goes dark, save for a bit of moonlight and the lanterns at the doorways. Adora puts up her ruse and follows their nightly routine as per usual.

"Night, Catra."

"Yeah. Night."

Adora lies herself down with no intentions of sleeping just yet. She feels Catra curling up by her ankles, huffing under her breath.

Adora waits for about ten minutes, until the room is filled with snoring and sleeping cadets. With a grin, she nudges her partner with her foot.

"Psst. Catra."

Catra groans and curls in on herself more tightly.

"Adora, if you have to go to the bathroom, just go."

"No, dummy! C'mere!"

"Seriously? It's too hot for me to sleep up there with you."

"No! Guh, Catra just come over here!"

She hears her heave a sigh as Catra pushes herself up and shakes her head, half-lidded eyes glinting in annoyance. She crawls up to Adora with a faint snarl in her tone.

"Adora, what the heck-"

"Would you be quiet and let me finish?" Adora playfully wraps an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer so only Catra's keen ears will hear. "Whaddaya say we go for a little midnight walk?"

Catra's ears perk up a little bit.

"What, like patrolling the hallways? Why?"

This wouldn't be the first time they'd snuck out at night just to play in the darkness when only the guards were awake. They'd do it out of boredom and to hone their stealth skills in not getting caught.

But Adora has other ideas in mind tonight. She shakes her head.

"Nope. Not just the hallways tonight." She smiles and looks directly into her partner's eyes. "Let's go outside."

Catra's eyes fly open as wide as they can go, her ears shoot up, and her tail starts to tremble with anticipation.

"What?! You mean-"

"Shh!" Adora quickly covers her mouth. "Don't wake up the whole camp!"

Catra wriggles free, too excited to wait, but does lower her voice a bit.

"But you're _serious_ though, right? You mean like sneak out? _Outside?_ In the middle of the night? Like they've always prohibited and told us not to do? Like I've always said I wanted to do, but you always told me no and made me stay inside and would monitor me to make sure I didn't sneak out on my own? _Now_ you wanna go outside?"

Adora chuckles sheepishly.

"Well... I mean, before I didn't want you to go out by yourself-"

"But now that _you_ wanna go, it's okay for me to, right?"

"Aw, don't say it like that!"

"But that's how it is, isn't it?"

Adora turns away and pouts.

"Sorry... Guess it's just taken me this long to realize you're right, Catra. We aren't really learning anything new in our training right now. It's just the same old stuff, and we've got a while before we can test to move up in the ranks..."

She sighs and looks back into Catra's eyes. "I don't wanna waste time. I wanna see what's out there beyond the Fright Zone just like you do. And if they aren't going to let us when we're ready for it, then we're just gonna have to do it ourselves." She eases back and offers her hand in the darkness. "Are you with me, partner?"

Catra is too excited to be miffed any longer. With a smirk that reveals her full adult fangs, she grabs Adora's hand.

"Let's do it."

Adora quickly gets on her shoes and pulls her red jacket over her shoulders. She crawls underneath her bed to open a certain box. She puts something into her pocket, then hurries to follow Catra.

It's easy to sneak away when there are two of them, and especially since it's them.

First they distract the guard stationed outside the dormitory. Catra scrapes her claws lightly against the wall to make him turn around, at which point Adora slips past him. Catra sticks to the shadows and waits until he turns again, staying behind his back the entire time so he never suspects a thing.

They take off down the hallways on quick, light feet and make for the nearest exit. In a way, sneaking out is the ultimate test for any cadet. They have to be quick, quiet, and clever if they want to succeed.

Before they turn any corner, Catra stops them and sniffs the air to determine if there are any scents of people on the other side. Whenever they're clear they hurry onward, but whenever there's someone there, the two girls devise a plan without words. Someone causes a distraction while the other sneaks by, then that person makes a distraction for the other.

They work together so perfectly that they get past every single one of the tired sentries, until at last they've reached the exit. One last guard stands on duty there, and she's the one with the keys to open or close the concrete lifting doors.

Catra goes first, pressing herself close to the wall and moving with painstaking slowness. She waits until the shadows of the lanterns flicker, and moves with them so no motion is detected. Once she's in position, she gives Adora her cue by swishing her tail.

Adora uses an old hiding spot of hers, a loose part of the wall that comes undone. She squeezes herself behind it and then reaches into her pocket. She pulls out one of the baby teeth she and Catra had collected over the years. It's tiny, but just big enough to make a sound.

Adora tosses it down the hallway as far as she can, then presses herself back behind the wall. The tooth hits the floor with a clinking sound, and the guard snaps her head around instantly.

"Who's there?"

She begins strutting off in the opposite direction. As she passes, Catra reaches out from the shadows and uses one claw to hook the ring of keys right off her belt.

When the guard has gone far enough, both Catra and Adora hurry out from their hiding spots toward the doorway. Adora points to which key will fit the lock, and Catra immediately puts it in place. There's a clicking sound and the massive exit begins to open from the ground up. They only open it a few feet.

Adora slips out first, then Catra removes the keys and lies them on the floor, so when the guard returns she'll just assume she'd dropped them. The door begins to shut again without the key in place, but Catra is lithe enough to crawl beneath it just before it hits the ground again. Adora helps her up, then pulls her into a tight hug.

"We did it!"

Catra lets out a purr.

"Yeah!"

They celebrate together for a minute, hearts still racing from the thrill of it all.

Catra looks up first.

"Whoa..."

Adora can hear the wonder in her voice. She eases back and turns around to look as well.

They've never seen the Fright Zone at night before, aside from glimpses out of the few windows. But this is the first time they've ever been in it for real.

The usual thick fog that clogs the Fright Zone has thinned out into a grey mist now that most of the machines have been shut down for the day. Distant buildings and structures glow with faint green or purple lights, which serve to make the twisted shadows appear darker.

But their greatest source of light comes from above.

Both girls gaze up in silent awe to the bright white moon overhead. It's curved like a lopsided smile, as if happy to see them outside for the first time like this.

They stand in stunned silence for a moment and simply admire its beauty, until Adora feels inclined to speak.

"Wow. I've never seen it in person before. I didn't know it was so big or so bright..." She gazes up at it in unblinking wonder, completely dazzled. Only feeling Catra leave her side snaps Adora out of her trance. "Catra?"

"Come on," she says. "Let's see how far we can go." She offers out her hand. Adora accepts, and together they take off into the night.

They chase each other and laugh and play, sometimes forgetting they shouldn't even be out here right now.

It's all just so exciting.

They keep their senses alert as best they can, but for the most part they're focused on exploration.

The Fright Zone is mostly buildings and structures, but there are patches of grasses and trees dotting the areas as well. After scampering after each other for a while, the two girls come to rest in one such patch.

The grass is tough and tall, high enough to conceal them when they sit down. A few gnarled trees cover them as well. But the moon is still visible far above them, glowing softly behind a swathe of clouds.

The two girls gradually settle down and huddle up against one another to admire the view and the feeling of freedom.

"I wonder how far the Whispering Woods are?" Catra says. "I wanna go there."

"Well, I think this much is good for tonight," Adora replies, hoping to pacify her friend's insatiable need for adventure. Catra grumbles a little, but says nothing more. They lean against one another for a while and just look up at the sky.

"I always thought the night sky was supposed to be black," Adora murmurs. "But it looks more purple or dark blue to me."

"Yeah..." Catra presses a little closer. "Hey, Adora? Do you know what happened to the stars?"

"Oh yeah... stars..." Adora sighs a little sadly. "Well, of course I never saw them for myself. They disappeared a long time ago, before either of us were born. A lot of the grown-ups at the Horde say it was those rotten Rebellion princesses. They stole the stars right out of the sky and are hiding them away for themselves!"

Catra growls and lashes her tail.

"Princesses," she spits. "I'll _make_ 'em put the stars back."

"Me, too."

But even without any stars, the night is still plenty beautiful. The moon is silver and bright, highlighting the clouds that roll by on the breeze. The wind makes the trees and grasses whisper all around the young cadets.

It's so... peaceful. Probably the most peaceful either of them have ever known the Fright Zone to be. It's no surprise they begin to doze off...

Adora isn't sure how long they've been out here, but when she next wakes it's because of something cold hitting her nose. She blinks open her bleary eyes and gasps to find that thick clouds have covered up the moon. More rain begins to fall, shaking the leaves and grass around them.

"Catra!" Adora shakes her awake. "Catra, get up! We gotta go back!"

"Huh? Back where?" Catra jolts up when she remembers where they are. "Oh, crap!"

"Come on!" Adora takes her hand and helps her up as the rain begins to fall faster. Catra yelps the second she starts getting wet.

"Kyaa! What the heck?!" She jumps closer to Adora and clings to her, tail fluffed and ears drooping. "Why is it raining?! It was clear before!"

Catra is already shivering beside her, clinging to her arm for warmth and balance. Adora gently pries her friend off so she can slip her arms out of her jacket. She drapes it over Catra's head and covers her as much as she can with it, then takes her hand.

"Come on. We've gotta go back before it gets worse."

They take off running back the way they'd come as the rain starts pelting down on top of them. Catra struggles to make sense of any smells with all the water, catching a few faint whiffs to steer them back in the right direction toward camp.

The keep hold of each other's hands tightly so they won't be separated in the storm. Catra keeps close and tries to share a bit of Adora's jacket with her too, even though they're both already soaked to the bone.

Catra ends up guiding the way back with her better vision and sense of direction. When Adora stumbles behind her, Catra quickly lunges back to steady her.

"Thanks," Adora pants. Catra just nods, then they continue on.

By the time the camp is in site, both girls are drenched, and their feet and legs are streaked with mud. They hurry to the same big heavy doors they'd snuck out from and start shouting.

"Let us in!"

"Please!"

Several other guards stationed outside nearby hear the commotion and come running. When they demand to know where the girls had been, Catra and Adora fib their way out of it, saying they'd been on a scouting mission and had gotten lost and only just found their way back now. With all the fuss, none of the guards seem to notice the girls are in sleepwear clothes instead of training attire.

They usher them inside, where Catra quickly covers them both with Adora's jacket. The cling to one another, shivering pitifully, hoping to dissuade any thoughts of punishment. The female guard they'd duped earlier addresses them now.

"Does your commanding officer know you were still missing?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am," Adora answers. "We knew the consequences if we didn't get back in time. We'll report back to him right away."

"Then run along."

"Right!"

Without wasting another second, the girls tear off down the darkened corridors. They don't stop running until they've reached the dorm rooms, and from there they have to sneak back to bed without alerting those guards.

Catra's enhanced night vision guides them back, where they drop the soaked jacket to the floor. They force themselves to change out of their messy wet clothes and into something dry, but even then their hair and skin is still damp.

Eventually, Adora crawls into her bed and lifts up the covers invitingly. Catra doesn't even consider going to the foot of the mattress. She crawls in beside Adora and snuggles up to her right away. Adora hugs her tightly and tucks them both in as best she can.

They shiver quietly for a moment, until the natural warmth of their bodies begins to spread.

"Are you okay?" Adora murmurs.

"Yeah... you?"

"Yeah."

They both sigh.

"Y'know," Adora mumbles. "If it hadn't rained, that would've been the best night ever."

"You kiddin'?" Catra smirks. "Even _with_ the rain it was _still_ the best night ever! We gotta do that more often!"

"M-Maybe..."

Adora has to wonder just how badly she'd messed up with this tonight. Now that Catra had gotten a taste of what the outside world and a dash of freedom is like, she'll probably never stop trying to taste it again by any means. Adora knows she's going to have to keep an even closer eye on her in the future to ensure she doesn't get into any major trouble.

But she doesn't regret tonight's little adventure. Not one bit. The moon had been so beautiful, the sky so vast, the wind so fresh. Even getting stuck in the rain had had its own odd charm.

And now, to wrap it all up, they're both safe and warm back in bed together.

Adora can feel Catra purring with all her body, louder than ever before. If every night could end up like this, regardless of what happened during the day, Adora would never have any complaints about anything ever again. She strokes her hands through Catra's damp hair and kisses her forehead.

"Night, Catra."

In response, Catra huddles up closer into her chest. She wraps her tail around Adora's back and lets out a long purr.

"Night, Adora."

The hissing of the rain outside lulls them to sleep in minutes, and their dreams are filled with open forests and stars.

* * *

 **A/N: These two definitely would pull stunts like this as kids and you can't convince me otherwise! This was their first 'sneak-out' adventure!**

 **Please review!**


	8. A Day In Bed

**This is the last chapter of the second timeskip, taking place directly after the previous chapter's events.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 8. A Day In Bed

The second Adora wakes up the next morning, she knows something isn't right.

First of all, she's aware that Catra is still curled up with her beneath the blankets, snoozing with little choppy purrs between each exhale.

Adora has to wonder why she's woken up before Catra for once, until last night's little adventure rushes to the forefront of her mind. That also explains why the sheets are a little chilled from their damp hair.

But she can't figure out why she's so _cold_.

A shudder cuts through her, and she clings more tightly to Catra, trying to stop her teeth from chattering. It's hard to keep her eyes open, and her head feels heavy.

She closes her eyes and buries her face into Catra's shoulder, wondering if a few more minutes of rest will help anything.

Catra unconsciously begins to purr a little bit more at her closeness, and even in spite of her ailments, Adora smiles.

 _At least I have her..._

She opts to wait until the guards sound the usual morning alarm to rouse all the cadets. At that point, Adora opens her eyes again, glimpsing the little scribbles of herself and Catra they'd doodled on the bed a while back. She smiles again as she feels Catra begin to stir.

Catra moans and sighs and stretches beneath the blankets, grumbling under her breath about wanting five more minutes. Adora tries to act normal and ignore the shivering. She pats Catra's back and ruffles her hair a little.

"Rise and shine, Catra."

The only response is a defiant groan.

"Mmmmnn..."

Adora chuckles.

"It's not like you to sleep in. Though I guess I can't blame you, after last night."

Catra's ears perk, and she looks up at her.

"So it wasn't a dream. That really happened, huh?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure."

Catra starts to purr again.

They both sit up slowly, but as soon as she does, Adora feels a bit dizzy. Catra is in the middle of stretching her arms out in front of her when Adora suddenly grabs onto her for support. Catra bristles and straightens up.

"Hey, whoa! What's the matter with _you?_ You sick or something? Couldn't handle a little rain, huh?" she goads.

"Sorry. It's nothing. Still just tired, I guess."

Catra inches a little closer and lowers her voice.

"Hey, I am too. But we can't let it show, or else people are gonna start asking questions. Come on, let's get ready." Catra offers her hand and helps Adora out of bed.

Standing makes her twice as dizzy as sitting up had, though, and Adora can't even manage to make the bed. So Catra throws it together hastily, shoves a few clean clothes at her, then grabs her hand to lead her to the bathrooms.

Adora is sluggish in everything she does, from changing clothes to brushing her teeth. Catra is usually finished before her, but not by _this_ much.

Even though Adora tries to make it seem like nothing is wrong, Catra easily sees through her. When she gets to rinsing out her mouth, she starts to cough. Catra's eyes narrow.

"Hey." She pulls Adora aside out of earshot of the others. "Are you okay? You're moving slower than Kyle in a relay race."

Adora swallows back a few more coughs and tries out a smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Maybe some breakfast will help wake me up a bit."

But before she can move away, Catra's got her by the wrist. She tugs Adora forward and presses the back of her hand to her forehead. Catra's eyes go wide.

"Hey, you've got a fever!"

"What?"

"No wonder you've been acting so weird! I knew something was wrong. Come on, we're going to see the healer."

"Catra, wait-"

"No!" Catra shouts the word almost vehemently, and Adora freezes. She can sense there's something weighing on her friend's mind. Before she can even ask, Catra continues, but she never looks back to show her face. "I've seen enough people get sick... They don't always get better... I'm _not_ gonna let that happen to you, too."

Her words silence any menial protests Adora might have had waiting at the tip of her tongue. She can't argue with her – not after that.

"Sorry..." she murmurs. "I don't think it's anything serious, but you're right. It's best to get it checked out so it doesn't get any worse."

Catra says nothing, but her tail lashes, and her grip on Adora's hand tightens. Adora can't help but smile. She steps up beside her partner and bumps shoulders with her lightly.

"Hey. Thanks for worrying about me."

And immediately, Catra goes on the defensive.

"Pssh, what? I'm not worried about you. It'd just be a _major_ pain if you ended up getting bedridden when we're supposed to be getting ready to test for junior cadets soon."

"Right. Of course that's it. Even though our exam isn't for another two months."

"Shut up!"

Adora giggles and follows alongside her. Catra wraps her tail around Adora's waist for a bit of extra support.

They visit the healer, a stout woman with short brown hair and thick-rimmed glasses. As Adora sits and gets assessed, she notices Catra pacing worriedly by the doorway and smiles again.

In the end, she's diagnosed with a minor head cold. Her orders are to skip training for the day, stay in bed, and to eat some hot soup, and she'd be better by tomorrow.

Adora thanks the healer and then makes her way back to Catra, who's all but paced her feet sore by now. The second she sees her, Catra hurries to grab her hand.

"Well? What did she say?"

Adora smiles.

"Calm down, Catra. I'm fine! It's just a minor cold, that's all."

For a moment, Catra looks so relieved she might cry. Adora pulls her in for a small hug.

"Don't worry, okay? I'll be fine. Promise."

"Pff..." she sniffles. "As if I'd worry about you..."

They're quiet for a moment. Adora relishes her warmth and closeness until she feels Catra sigh.

"Sorry..."

"Huh? For what?"

Catra flicks her tail guiltily, and her ears droop.

"For laughing at you before... I didn't think you were _actually_ sick... And it's my fault it happened in the first place..."

"Hey..." Adora eases back, reaching up to cup both hands on either side of Catra's face. "It was my idea to sneak out, remember? And you never asked me for my jacket. That was all on me. I earned this cold fair and square." She runs a hand up through Catra's messy bangs. "Besides, I'm glad it was me and not you. I can't _imagine_ how much you'd be moaning and groaning if _you_ were the one who caught a cold."

"H-Hey!"

"You're so funny, Catra~"

Catra wriggles away, but as they start walking back, their hands stay together.

"So I guess this means you're taking the day off, huh?"

"Yeah. After breakfast I'm supposed to just go back to bed all day... Ugh, that sounds so boring..."

"Training is gonna be even _more_ boring without you there..."

"Yeah. But it's just for today! We can both tough it out!"

They make their way to the mess hall to get some food, and all the while Catra sticks closer to Adora than usual. Adora gets soup as ordered, and they sit down with the rest of their teammates, who'd been wondering where they were. Catra handles the conversation from there.

"Oh, Adora got sick overnight! Caught a cold for no apparent reason and now she gets to stay in bed all day to sleep it off. Can't show any weakness to the higher-ups after all, so she's gotta go hide in bed."

The things she projects sound rather harsh, as is expected from Catra. But Adora just smiles to herself as she sips at her soup; she'd seen just how worried and scared Catra had been for her. Only now that she knows the cold is nothing serious is she able to put up the act and mess around.

Once they've finished eating, Catra and Adora prepare to part ways for the first day they'll be spending without each other since they'd met. Catra doesn't look her in the eyes directly as she mumbles her support.

"You'd better be all right by the time I get back. What kinda Force Captain-in-training can't knock out a head cold in less than a day?"

"Right. I'll make sure to do that," Adora agrees. "And don't worry about me. Just kick butt like you always do."

"What? Worry about you sleeping all cozy in bed all day? I don't think so."

They share a smile, then a brief hug. Adora pats her back before letting her go.

"Go get 'em, partner."

"Yeah. Get better."

But as if on cue, just as they'd been about to part ways with smiles on their faces, a familiar voice interrupts.

"What's this about getting better?" Shadow-Weaver seems to appear out of thin air as always. She glides past Catra without a second glance and instead pauses in front of her prized possession. "Adora, my dear. Why are you not attending your training lessons today?"

"Shadow-Weaver." Adora dips her head in greeting. "I... seem to have caught a cold overnight. The healer says it would be best if I took a day off to recuperate."

"Is that so? And how _exactly_ did you fall ill?" As she always does, she rounds on Catra for her accusations. Catra growls.

In the past, Adora knows her friend had always been too scared of Shadow-Weaver to confront her, even if Catra had done nothing wrong. Over time, however, she had gotten bold enough to at least make an effort at defending herself.

But since she truly does blame herself for Adora's sickness, she can't find anything to say. So Adora quickly jumps in with an answer.

"I forgot to dry my hair after my bath last night," she explains. "It was wet all night. That's what got me sick. It was my mistake."

Shadow-Weaver glares at Catra a few seconds longer before turning back to Adora to caress her face. She seems satisfied with the answer.

"I see. You worked so very hard yesterday that you fell asleep right away. You deserve the day of rest today."

Adora just smiles through the lies, for both her own sake and Catra's too. Shadow-Weaver gently pats her head, then withdraws.

"Do feel better soon, Adora. There are no capable cadets without you present."

"Well, actually, Catra is-"

But before Adora can finish, Shadow-Weaver has turned away and vanished.

Adora sighs, and Catra visibly relaxes. Adora knows that even though her friend has become a bit stronger over the years, she's still scared of the sorceress. Adora looks Catra over to find her tail fur slightly fluffed up, but now it's beginning to lie flat.

"You okay?"

Catra shrugs.

"Trust me, I like this new trend where she pretends not to notice me a lot more. But what do you mean, am _I_ okay? _You're_ the sick one, dummy. Go to bed."

"Right," Adora laughs. "I'm on it." She wraps one arm around Catra's shoulders for a brief hug. "Kick some butt for me today."

"You got it."

They part for real this time, Catra heading for the barracks as Adora retreats to the dormitory. It feels weird traveling back this way so early in the day. The room is entirely empty when she arrives.

"I mean... I guess this could be nice."

Muttering to herself, she retreats back to her own bed to remove her boots. At the very least, the unused bunk bed overhead provides a bit of shade so it'll be easier to fall asleep during the day.

Adora lies down beneath the blankets and closes her eyes right away. Immediately, she feels a little better in being still, and she doesn't feel dizzy anymore.

But falling asleep isn't an easy feat. It isn't the sickness or the odd hour that prevents her from doing so, but rather, it's a lack of companionship.

It's the first time in years she's slept without being able to feel Catra's weight somewhere on the bed with her.

Adora shudders, feeling colder than ever without her. She clings to the blankets and curls up with them, imagining she's holding onto her dear friend. The bed feels so empty and cold without Catra, and it bothers Adora to no end. She can't fall asleep for her life.

Every once in a while, a bout of coughing interrupts her melancholy, and only rouses her further. She groans and sighs and tosses and turns for hours to no avail.

In the end, the only thing that pulls her under is the sickness itself, which makes her body too exhausted to fret anymore.

Adora sleeps through the lunchtime hour, but when she does wake a short while after, her stomach is growling. She moans and pushes herself up, mentally steeling herself for a trip to the cafeteria when she notices something on the floor. A tray with a bowl of soup covered in foil had been left for her, along with a small note.

Adora looks around the room, but whomever had left it is gone.

She leans over to pull the tray up into her lap, removing the foil to find the soup still warm. With a smile, she unravels the paper, which is inked with rough scribbles that can only belong to one person. And as if the sharp handwriting isn't proof enough, the message confirms the sender.

It reads: _You're drooling._

Adora quickly wipes a hand over her mouth to find it slightly wet indeed. She ends up laughing alone to herself as she begins on her lunch.

The soup is a perfect temperature to sooth the itching in her throat. It quells the last of the annoying coughs and warms her from the inside out. When she finishes, she puts the tray back onto the floor and lies back down with a smile on her face.

Adora falls asleep almost instantly this time and rests throughout the afternoon.

What eventually wakes her is a feeling rather than a sound. She can finally sense the warmth she'd been missing all day.

Slowly, she blinks her eyes open to glimpse a familiar figure at the foot of her bed. Catra is sitting crossed-legged and filing her nails quietly, so focused on her task she doesn't even realize Adora has woken yet. No one else is in the room, which makes Adora assume it's not yet time for cadets to be back here.

She yawns and shifts about a little bit to let Catra know she's awake. Catra drops the nail file and quickly turns to face her.

"Adora! You're awake!" Her tail swishes, and Adora imagines she's on the verge of a purr. She smiles and sits herself up to stretch out her arms a bit.

"Yeah. But more importantly, what are you doing back so soon?"

"I just wanted to check on you."

Adora hadn't expected her to be so upfront and honest with her answer. She's touched.

Until Catra keeps going.

"Plus, training today was suuuper boring. I just wanted to get the heck outta there."

"That sounds more like it," Adora chuckles. "So you snuck away early?"

"Well, I guess you could say that. But it wasn't blatant sneaking. I had a plan."

"A plan?" Adora tilts her head. "Like what?"

"Like letting Kyle deck me in the face so I'd have an excuse to leave and go see the healer."

Adora frowns.

"You what?!"

"Yeah, but like I said, it was Kyle. It didn't hurt that much. But there was enough blood to make it convincing. He seemed really proud of himself for a second before he passed out."

"Catra!"

"What? It's not _my_ fault he can't handle seeing a little blood."

"Not that! Well, kinda that, but you let yourself get hit? Just so you could have an excuse to end training early?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Adora is in disbelief, and yet she feels she shouldn't be surprised. This is _Catra_ , after all.

The shirt her partner is wearing has a red horizontal stripe across the top, so Adora hadn't noticed the dried blood stains originally, but she can see them now. She shakes her head.

"I can't believe it. You really let yourself get hurt just so you could come back and see me."

"Don't get all sappy on me. I just wanted to make sure you weren't dead."

Adora grabs Catra's wrist and pulls her up closer, brushing a few fingers gently over her nose.

"That's really sweet of you, but don't do it again."

"Then don't get sick again, dummy."

Adora pulls her into a long hug.

"Thanks, Catra."

"Yeah, whatever. Hey, let's go hit the mess hall early!"

Catra ushers Adora out of bed, and together they enjoy an early supper. Adora feels her cold is just about gone now. By the time they make it back to the room for bed, she feels re-energized.

"I feel like I could go do all the training I missed right now!"

"Yeah, well don't," Catra grunts. "Some of us _did_ that training today and we're beat."

"Right. Sorry. We can spar tomorrow."

"Whatever."

Adora pats the space next to her, and Catra abandons the foot of the bed to join her beneath the blankets. She knows Adora loves it when she purrs, so Catra musters up a rumble and lets it out.

Adora giggles and squeezes her around her torso, burying her face into Catra's chest. She can hear and feel her purring, and even the faint beat of her heart. Adora sighs and closes her eyes.

"Thanks, Catra. Night."

A huff.

"Night. Now shut up and go to sleep."

They both rest all through the night, and wake refreshed and ready for whatever the next day brings.

* * *

 **A/N: I enjoy writing this pre-teen Catra because it's like half of her shy, aloof younger self and half of her stubborn, feisty future self. And I love writing Adora through her years because she doesn't change much, and she's just so fun to write in general!**

 **Next chapter will begin the final time-skip to their current canon ages as of season 1!**

 **Please review!**


	9. Friendly Fire

**Now we're onto the final timeskip! These events take place probably a few months before canon season 1 picks up!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 9. Friendly Fire

The weeks turn to months, and the months to years, and all the while Adora and Catra hardly leave each other's side.

Even in their teen years, where most childhood friends tend to grow distant and need more space, Adora and Catra only grow closer.

And though their childish mischief-making had decreased, it still hadn't stopped altogether. Ever since the first night they'd snuck out to see the moon, they'd probably managed the feet half a dozen more times.

And as they gradually began rising up the ranks as cadets, they'd been granted more freedoms, such as unsupervised scouting and training missions outside camp boundaries. Naturally, they had always completed their assigned work, but also tended to go exploring whenever possible.

They'd almost reached the Whispering Woods once or twice, but had always been warded off by their own uncertainty and fear of consequences. Adora has vowed that one day she'd really take Catra there, but that day hadn't arrived just yet.

So they'd made the most of simply scouting every nook and cranny of the Fright Zone, learning their home territory first before they could consider others.

By now, they've both grown into fine junior cadets, and rumors bustling around suggest they might be able to complete their training in record time, and possibly advance to Force Captains sooner than others.

That's Adora's goal. She wants to lead her own forces against the Rebellion and make her mark on the world. And she wants to be able to work and fight alongside Catra with the liberties and freedoms bestowed upon Force Captains.

Like that, they would be able to travel at will and see the world. She knows that's what Catra wants more than anything, and Adora is determined to reach that goal with her someday soon.

But for now, it's more rigorous training, fights befitting of people of their skill level. Now they face dozens of opponents – be it bots or fellow cadets – instead of just one or two at a time. Sometimes it's solo work, sometimes they fight in pairs, and sometimes with teams of five or six. But no matter what, Catra and Adora have always fought on the same side together.

But they know by now there's a first time for everything.

It starts off like any other morning. Adora wakes and can already sense Catra's presence hovering over her eagerly. She opens her eyes slowly to find herself looking up into yellow and blue.

"Bout time," Catra scoffs. Adora rolls her eyes as she pushes herself up.

"Y'know, I remember the _one_ time you actually slept past 5AM. It was nice."

They start getting ready for the day. Adora greets her teammates and friends while Catra just nods. As they finish up in the bathrooms and begin heading for the mess hall, Adora mumbles to herself.

"I wonder what we could be doing in our training today. They keep saying they're going to give us a surefire date for our senior cadet exam, but they still haven't.

"Who cares?" Catra yawns. "It'll happen eventually, right?"

"You should probably start studying more, actually."

"Pssh, I don't need to study."

"Who was the first ever Force Commander to successfully take down a Rebellion princess' army, which princess was it, and what-"

"All right, all right, quit it!"

Adora chuckles as they enter the mess hall and get on line for their food. They sit and eat and chat with their teammates as usual until the announcement is made to migrate to the training area where their commander addresses them.

They start off with their usual warm-ups and exercises, which consist of an obstacle course complete with booby traps, hurdles, and brief battles with bots. The course is different every time, but seasoned cadets like Adora, Catra, and a handful of others are able to predict and react to things quickly and accurately.

They are the ones who complete the course without incident and impress their commander, who is always marking notes. Catra even finishes more quickly than Adora, though she was a bit sloppier in her methods of disarming and dodging the bots.

Once everyone has finished, they move onto today's real objective.

"All right, good work," their commander says. "Now I want you to break off into pairs for our next activity. And I'll tell you now it isn't what you think, so choose wisely."

"The heck does _that_ mean?" Catra mumbles, already stepping closer to Adora. "Sounds ominous. Whatever robots or senior cadets he throws at us, we can take 'em."

Adora smirks.

"Right." She loops her arm through Catra's to ensure everyone knows they are partners. As if anyone expected otherwise.

It's the same for everyone else. They all choose a teammate or a close friend to stand beside.

Once everyone has decided, they're told to put on the usual training armor chest pieces. The commander surveys his troops as he paces across the room.

"Now, as you all know, our junior cadets will soon be assessed, and those who pass will move up the ranks to become seniors, one step closer to Force Captain. What we're doing here today is going to be the first part of your exam."

The room fills with shocked and slightly terrified gasps. Adora is of course, in the latter group.

"What?!" she whispers. " _Today?!_ We're starting our exams _today?_ I'm not ready for this, Catra-"

"Calm down!" Catra gives her shoulder a good shake. "Of course you're ready for this, idiot! You've been training for it your whole life, _remember?_ "

"Yeah... yeah, you're right." Adora straightens up with a fierce light in her eyes as the reality settles in. "Thanks, Catra."

"Whatever."

There's nervous, excited chatter all around now as it starts sinking in that their exam is beginning today, clearly starting off with some unannounced combat practice. Once everyone has selected a partner and retrieved their bo staffs, the commander gives the final set of instructions.

"Now then, I'll be calling you up in the pairs you've chosen. The first part of your exam to move up the ranks will be to fight the partner you've chosen."

" _What?!_ " Catra and Adora shriek at the same time, and dozens of other people do as well. They look at their partners, their best friends in most cases, and begin to worry. Catra and Adora are the same.

"I mean," Catra mumbles. "I've fought you a billion times, but never for a _cadet exam._ "

"Same here," Adora agrees. "That's a ton of pressure. And will only the winner get to pass?"

"Settle down," the commander says above the din. "And to answer your question, Adora, which cadet passes will depend on the fight. If I think you have both demonstrated exemplary combat skills and strategy, I will allow both parties to pass. However, in some cases I may only select the victor, or even neither of you. It all depends on your performance."

Hearing that both people may be able to pass lifts a collective weight off the crowd's shoulders. Adora is visibly relieved; the last thing she ever would have wanted would be if she were to advance and Catra was left behind. And if Catra could advance and not her, she would definitely be a little jealous. Her hope for today's match is that both of them will pass.

Catra crosses her arms and shrugs, though Adora can tell she's relieved at the news, too.

"Oh good," she says. "We can both pass. Guess that means I won't have to go easy on you."

Adora elbows her.

"Oh, as if! If anything, _I'm_ the one who's gonna have to go easy on _you!_ "

"You wish!"

Similar banter breaks out across the crowd. At first, the idea of fighting their best friend was intimidating and more than a little nerve-wracking. But once they've thought about it for a moment, they come to the realization that there's no one else they'd rather battle.

So the commander begins calling pairs up to have them begin. Adora and Catra watch from the sidelines, trying to calm their nerves about their own upcoming match. Instead they focus on what the other fighters are doing right or wrong, and thinking about what they themselves would do differently in their own fight.

The hardest part is definitely the end of the match, when everyone waits in anxious anticipation for the verdict. Those that pass can't even show their joy about it if their best friend doesn't pass as well. The pairs in which both people fail are even relieved just by the fact that they can continue their training together for another three months before they can test again.

The smallest percentage end up in the last group, which is where both parties pass. Only then are both people able to celebrate.

It seems to take hours as they go through the matches, and the longer Adora and Catra wait, the more anxious they become. They watch the group of victors grow gradually, while the group of failures expands twice as quickly.

And when at last they're called up, it doesn't even feel real.

"Next up, Adora and Catra."

The mention of their names sends a ripple of murmurs through the onlookers, cadets and officers alike.

"Oh, this should be good."

"My money's on Adora."

"Yeah, me too."

"I think they could both win... maybe..."

Adora tries to ignore the comments, but she knows Catra's keen ears pick up on everything everyone is saying, whether she wants to hear it or not.

Adora looks to her best friend and partner of over ten years now. Catra appears to be mostly calm and collected, but only Adora is able to tell by the twitch of her tail and the aloofness of her gaze that she's equally as nervous as Adora is. Before they start walking up, Adora offers her hand.

"Hey. Let's do our best out there, partner."

Catra flicks an ear. In the past, it used to take her a long time to decide whether or not to accept that hand. But now she grabs it tightly, firmly, and without hesitation.

"Yeah," she grins. "Make sure not to cry too much when I kick your butt."

"Says the biggest crybaby of them all."

"I am _not!_ "

"Are _too!_ "

They both end up laughing softly, hands still entwined. It's a silent but mutual action when they each find their way to the other's pinkie finger and loop them together. They squeeze, breathe, then release.

"Let's do it," Catra mutters. "Let's give 'em a fight they'll never forget."

"Right," Adora smirks. "Good luck. You're gonna need it."

"You are _so_ full of it."

They give each other one last glance before separating and heading off to opposite sides of the makeshift battlefield. They draw their weapons as instructed and ready themselves.

From then on, they can't worry about one another as friends, only as opponents.

Their commander goes through the usual dialogue.

"Fighters, ready?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Hell yeah."

He nods.

"Very well. First person to three points finishes the match, but I'll decide who advances. Begin!"

Both Adora and Catra charge right away, neither wanting to let the other land the first blow. Adora keeps her staff at the side of her chest, ready to either strike or block depending on which of them gets which opportunity first.

As she expected, Catra lifts her arms and goes to make the first hit. Adora easily side-steps and loops around her, aiming a blow to her back.

She isn't surprised when Catra leaps high and clears the staff by a foot, and she's ready to block when Catra counters midair. Catra lets gravity work for her as she comes down from the jump and leans as much of her weight as she can onto Adora. Adora's boots skid against the floor as she's forced back a pace, but she holds her staff firmly.

For the split second when their weapons are crossed and they're face-to-face, Catra smirks.

"Is that all you've got, Adora?"

Adora knows it's more than just a taunt to agitate her; it's a taunt to motivate her. She returns it with equal fire.

"Please. You're gonna have to do better than _that!_ "

With a surge of strength she pushes forward and up, forcing Catra back. Immediately afterward, Adora swings a low kick at her ankles. Catra jumps back and gets out of range, twirling her staff and using her tail for balance.

They straighten up and begin circling one another like wolves. Both maintain a fair distance, assessing the other's steps and movements with calculating eyes, reminding themselves this isn't just any other mock fight, but a part of their exam for senior cadets.

Adora notes that Catra is gradually inching closer, barely by anything, enough that no one would notice if they didn't already know to look out for it.

Adora lets her, pretending she doesn't notice. She wants to lure Catra into attacking first again. She knows Catra tends to get excited and use a lot of her energy at the beginning of a fight, then have little left for the rest. If Adora can get her tired early on, she can finish this quickly.

But Catra must see through her too, because she stops creeping closer and instead goes on the retreat.

Adora huffs. If one of them doesn't attack soon they'll be given warnings.

So Adora goes on the offense with a charge, just to resume the action. Catra dodges and counters again, but it's all child's play to the two of them. This is only physical action, but they both know they won't land any points here. It's a matter of timing, of who takes the initiative and when.

It takes a very long time for the first point to be made, which speaks volumes to their skill and stamina. Adora takes a huge risk at their next parry and tries out a jump of her own. She isn't nearly as agile as Catra, and she definitely isn't a jumper.

But the action is enough to take Catra by surprise just long enough to leave her open. She still goes to block, but Adora just barely manages to jab her staff between Catra's arms and score her chest piece. The buzzer sounds as one-third of Catra's armor glows red. She hisses.

"Why you-"

Without wasting a second, Catra counters. Adora barely has time to block, but as it is, Catra has much more power in her attack than Adora does in her defense.

With a shove, Catra wrings Adora's staff to one side, ducks down, and makes a perfect upward hit on her chest piece. Adora's armor turns the same fraction of red.

Adora retreats right away before Catra can get in a second hit, but Catra is right on her heels. She uses her impressive speed to back Adora up, swinging at her wildly to intimidate and frazzle her. Adora blocks and dodges as much as she can, but she realizes she's playing right into Catra's plan.

So without warning, she stops moving, crossing her arms over her chest to prepare for the impact. Catra, who had intended to keep pushing forward, yelps when she crashes into her now.

Adora gives a shove with her shoulder and knocks Catra backward, spinning once to gain some momentum for her blow. Even as she staggers back, Catra manages to block, but the staff falls from her grip.

Normally, Adora wouldn't play dirty and hit her when she's unarmed. But this is for the exam.

So she lunges for a hit as Catra stumbles, but to her surprise, her partner blocks the blow with her bare arm. Catra winces and spits out a curse, but quickly pushes Adora's weapon to the side. In a split second she lunges too, ramming her elbow into Adora's armor. The buzzer sounds, and another third lights up red.

The crowds cheer and shout as Adora is sent reeling. She'd been too careless. Catra had _wanted_ to be disarmed to throw her off guard. She'd taken the hits to her own body for the sake of countering without her weapon, and it still counted as a fair point.

Adora isn't sure if she's more impressed or peeved.

But it just proves that Catra wants this victory just as badly as she does, and she's willing to do anything to show it.

Catra quickly scoops her staff back up with a sneer that reveals her fangs.

"Tables have turned, huh, Adora?"

Adora gives her staff a hard spin.

"We're just getting started."

Most other fights had already finished by this point, but the length of theirs shows how seriously Adora and Catra are thinking things through. They don't rush in blindly. They ponder, strategize, and act based on what is logical to achieve, even if it means being unfair; everything the Horde has taught them until this point in their training.

It's several more minutes of intense parrying before the next point lands. Catra might have been clever enough to sacrifice her arm before since it allowed her to land her second hit, but Adora can tell that it's hurting her now. She tries to hold her staff and push mainly with her good arm, which is her dominant one, but it's still clear that without the full support of her left that her blocks and strikes aren't as powerful.

Adora won't let herself feel bad about playing dirty. She starts aiming blows directly at Catra's injured left arm. Catra reads her intent right away and dodges as much as she can, but she knows she can't get her final victory point by evasion alone. She has to try to get close again to land the final hit.

Adora waits for her, egging her on.

"Come on, Catra. Even _more_ of your hair is turning gray."

Catra snorts, but doesn't fall for it. She charges, but it's a fake, so as soon as Adora goes to block, Catra knocks into her side. Not wanting to lose her balance, Adora quickly steps into a spin and extends her staff. Catra jumps back, and the second the staff has passed she charges at Adora's back.

Adora drops down onto all fours and jabs her staff behind herself. She nails Catra right on her bad arm, and as she's sputtering from the pain, Adora cuts it right across her armor. The buzzer goes off again. Catra leaps back out of range and spits.

The onlookers are on the tips of their toes for the final point to be made. There's so much chatter, but the commander doesn't call for silence. He lets the two fighters continue with the noise happening all around them.

Adora can ignore it easily. But she knows Catra is having a hard time. Her ears keep flicking and swiveling, and her tail lashes in irritation. Her senses might be her best asset for tracking, but they can weigh her down during combat if they're too severely overwhelmed.

Adora knows this is her only chance to claim her victory. She can tell Catra is just as exhausted as she is now. Adora is willing to risk her career on this final tactic.

She charges headlong toward her partner and best friend, lifting her staff up high above her head, exposing her armor in a tempting display. Catra must sense it's a trap because she dodges back instead of taking the bait.

Nonetheless, Adora keeps charging at her. She waits until the perfect second to swing, knowing full-well she'll miss. But Catra jumps to avoid it anyway, just to be safe.

That's when Adora drops her staff and lets it hit the floor. It rolls, and as Catra comes down she lands right on top of it. With a shriek she falls hard onto her back, losing hold of her own weapon as well.

Adora tries to use Catra's methods against her and aims to hit her armor with her elbow. But even though she's winded, Catra manages to roll over at the last second and avoid the finishing blow.

She grapples with Adora, grabbing both of her hands as their fingers interlock tightly. Adora pushes her down, applying more weight onto Catra's injured arm. Catra hisses and digs her claws into the backs of Adora's hands. Adora's hair has come out of its ponytail by now, and it all falls down around her face in messy strands. They're both panting, but Adora has the upper hand.

"Sorry, Catra. But I'm winning this."

She pins her down harder, and Catra yelps. Adora flinches, but she can't let her emotions win out just yet. Not until she lands that last point. She just needs to weaken Catra long enough to grab the staff nearby and finish it. Until then she just pushes, putting more and more weight onto her.

Catra is too winded to counter verbally, and she knows she's going to lose if she doesn't do something.

She doesn't even think. It just happens naturally.

She pulls her knees up to her chest, out of Adora's straddle, and starts to kick at her stomach. Her claws come out, slashing at Adora's shirt and armor in a desperate effort to get her off.

Adora feels the hits like she had the first time this had happened so many years ago. The claws cause sharp prickles of pain to spread across her stomach, but her armor protects her from the worst of it this time.

Even so, she can see the fear in Catra's eyes just before she closes them.

"N-No-" she rasps. "No, no, g-get off me!"

And suddenly she's nothing more than a terrified child again. Catra kicks as hard as she can, wrenching her good hand free of Adora's grasp. She swipes blindly, and Adora feels four sharp claws slice her cheek open. She screams and falls off to one side, covering her stomach with one hand and her face with the other. Blood seeps through her fingers and stains her clothes. As soon as her weight has shifted, Catra springs up into a crouch, eyes wide in terror.

"A-Adora?"

Adora watches as the realization of what she'd done sinks in. Catra forgets about where they are, forgets about the fight and the exam.

All she sees is Adora bleeding because of her. Again.

Adora knows she's going to run. There's only one way to stop her.

She grabs her bo staff with her bloodied hand and gives one final swing. The buzzer sounds long and loud, and the crowds around them erupt with applause.

Adora hears someone calling for medical attention. She drops her staff and puts her hand back on her cheek, feeling more blood oozing out.

Sure enough, it all brings Catra back to the present. The fear fades from her eyes, but it's replaced with confusion. She sits there on the floor mere inches away from Adora, gripping her own injured arm as she stares blankly, fighting for breath. When she does speak, her voice is incredulous.

"You..."

Adora swallows. She knows Catra will take this as a betrayal. When Catra had stopped because she'd seriously thought she hurt her, Adora had taken advantage and used it to get her winning point. She can see it in her mis-matched eyes that the betrayal of trust hurts Catra immensely more than the physical pain.

Adora fights to hold back tears.

"Catra, I-"

But before she can finish, a sudden chill fills the air. Everyone in the room feels it, because the talking dies down. Adora shudders too, but no one shakes more violently than Catra.

As Shadow-Weaver parts the terrified crowds, her deep voice – cold enough to freeze hearts – fills the room in a quiet, threatening whisper.

"What _exactly_ is going on here...?"

* * *

 **A/N: This was a super fun yet horrible chapter to write. I liked exploring their battle tactics, how they'd know each other's nuances better than anyone else, how even Adora might resort to playing dirty against Catra if she had to (exploring the concept that - just maybe for a time - Adora's main focus in life could have shifted away from wanting to be free with Catra, to actually becoming a Force Commander with or without her).**

 **And of course Shadow-Weaver arriving to see her precious Adora bleeding (again, because of Catra), is just the evil cherry on top of it all.**

 **Please review!**


	10. Acts Of Defiance

**I know, I keep having Shadow-Weaver appear to ruin everything. I'm sorry. Sort of. Especially about expressing Adora's misguided affection toward her and having her believe it's a form of love. Anyways-**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 10. Acts Of Defiance

Adora feels sick, and not just because of the pain in her stomach or the blood still dripping down her face.

This is a different kind of sickness, and it's much, much worse. She's felt it before, far too often.

She loves Shadow-Weaver – she truly does. But she fears her too.

And her least favorite thing in the world is when Shadow-Weaver appears at the worst possible times, which seemed to be her specialty.

Adora doesn't dare turn around to face her, because she doesn't want Shadow-Weaver to see the wounds; she knows that will only enrage her further, and all of that rage will be directed at one person in particular.

Catra trembles in front of Adora, tail bristling and ears lying flat. Her eyes are wide and nearly despondent with how much fear is in them.

Over time, she'd become more defiant, and was often able to hold her own against the sorceress. She'd even go so far as to argue with her or challenge her.

But there's no hopes of any of that happening now - not when Catra is already so scared and confused about what had just happened.

Adora longs to reach out for her hand, but she doesn't dare to move. She can only listen to Shadow-Weaver's dangerous drawl of a voice as she advances behind her.

"Commander. Clear this room immediately. I'd like to have a talk with those girls."

"Yes, Shadow-Weaver."

Adora hears the crowds disperse and disappear, until only the three of them remain. Catra remains petrified. Adora can see tears clinging to the corners of her eyes, but they don't fall.

She feels the sweep of robes as Shadow-Weaver comes up beside her and kneels gently. The long crooked fingers reach for her. They're soft on her, but Adora still flinches.

"My dearest Adora. What's happened to you?" Shadow-Weaver moves Adora's hand away from her cheek to reveal the scratches and the blood. Her eyes travel over the tears in her shirt as well. "I seem to remember something like this happening once before."

There's a hint of warning in her tone – a threat. She begins to turn toward Catra. Adora grits her teeth and tries to stop her.

"It was our exam!" she blurts. "Our exam to become senior cadets. We had to do whatever was necessary to score the points and win. Everyone got hurt in their matches. It wasn't just me..."

Shadow-Weaver turns back to her and cradles her face tenderly.

"Oh yes, but Adora. You see, this same incident has already happened once before. And I _do_ believe I'd instructed not to let it happen again. And yet it has..." Her hand falls away from Adora's face, and the gentle fingers turn gnarled and sharp. Adora chokes.

"Wait-"

But Shadow-Weaver doesn't listen. She rounds on Catra, grabbing her by the throat, and lifts her as she stands.

" _You._ " The sorceress holds Catra up high until her feet can't reach the floor. "Have I not _warned_ you time and again not to let anything happen to Adora? That was your only purpose in staying by her side. And yet I find _you_ are the one to cause her more injury than anything or anyone else."

Catra blinks to keep the tears at bay and feebly grabs onto Shadow-Weaver's arm.

"Back off..."

The sorceress howls.

"You _dare_ challenge me, girl?" Her grip tightens as she lifts Catra higher, making her sputter. "I shall erase your memory as I see fit until you are no longer a threat to Adora."

A sickeningly familiar red glow begins to envelop her hands. She reaches for Catra with her crooked fingers, finally ready to make good on her threats. Catra hisses and tries to free herself, but the fear consumes her to the point of stillness. She closes her eyes, and the tears drip free.

Adora can't just sit by and watch. She won't. She unclasps her armor and lets it drop to the floor. She removes her hands from the wounds on her body and jumps to her feet, throwing both arms out as she gets between Shadow-Weaver and Catra as best she can.

"Stop it!"

Her cry has the sorceress pausing, because it wasn't just a plea this time. It was a command.

Adora stares into Shadow-Weaver's bleak white eyes without fear for consequence and doesn't flinch. Shadow-Weaver lowers her hand, but still keeps a firm hold on Catra.

"Adora, dear. Look at your face. She's mauled you."

"No, she hasn't." Adora holds her ground defiantly. "It'll heal. All of it will. The bleeding will stop and the skin will come back. But if you take away someone's memories, they'll _never_ come back. And I won't let you do that to Catra."

Shadow-Weaver tries to keep her voice steady and free of outrage when addressing her.

"But Adora, my only intention is you keep you safe. I cannot allow her reckless actions to put you in harm's way-"

"I didn't _ask_ for your help!" Adora shouts. "I don't need saving, Shadow-Weaver. Especially not from Catra! She's my best friend! She's all I have!" She gets ahold of herself and controls her volume, but she doesn't let her angry tone falter.

"She didn't hurt me on purpose. She would never. I knew the risks of going into that battle and I went in anyway. It was my decision. You can't punish _her_ for that." Adora looks down to her hand, wet and red from where she'd been holding her cheek. She flicks some of the blood away and continues.

"I don't need you to protect me, Shadow-Weaver. I don't need you to baby me and decide what's good or bad for me. I don't need you coming to my rescue for things I don't need saving from. I appreciate that you raised me and took care of me as a child, but I _don't_ appreciate how you keep threatening and hurting my friends."

She doesn't blink or waver as she gives a threat of her own:

"If you want to erase Catra's memories, you'll have to erase mine first. Now _let her go_. I'm not asking."

She isn't scared. Not of Shadow-Weaver. If she's scared of anything right now, it's that Catra is still in pain.

Adora glares furiously into the sorceress' eyes for a long moment. The mask makes her expression unreadable, so Adora has no idea what to expect.

But she certainly doesn't expect laughter.

It's a low, throaty chortle, bemused more than anything else. Shadow-Weaver sighs.

"Now _that_ was impressive, Adora. That is what I've been waiting to see from you. Challenging authority without fear for your wellbeing is a vital trait of any good future Force Captain. I'm glad the day's finally come where you've learned to stand up and face me. So very well. You may both keep your memories. I look forward to seeing you pass the rest of your exam, Adora."

With this, Shadow-Weaver releases her grip on Catra. Catra crashes to the floor, hacking and coughing. Adora drops down beside her and puts an arm around her shaking back. When she next looks up, Shadow-Weaver's robes are vanishing into the dark hallways beyond.

Adora directs her full attention back to her sputtering partner.

"Catra? Catra? Are you... Are you okay?"

Catra has a hand to her throat, rubbing her sore neck and coughing some more. Tears keep falling and dripping into Adora's lap.

"Yeah-" Catra chokes. "I'm _fine_ , Adora. I'm just _great_."

"Sorry..." Adora wraps her in a loose hug and sighs into her hair. "I'm sorry, Catra..."

"Shut up." Catra shoves her away and glares. "You didn't do anything. _I'm_ the one who-" She looks up at Adora's bloodied face. The stains have run down the side of her neck and all over her shirt, which is also slightly torn from all the kicking. Catra coughs again and bows her head. "Shadow-Weaver's right. I keep... I keep _doing_ this-"

"No, _you_ shut up!" Adora snaps. "You did it out of self-defense. And besides, it's not even that bad. The bleeding has already stopped, see?" She wipes the rest of the dried blood from her hand onto her pants, then takes Catra's hand. "You can't let Shadow-Weaver get in your head anymore. She's been in mine for too long. I realize that now. I'm sorry it's taken me so long. She's been hurting you all this time and all I ever did was sit back and watch..."

Catra chokes again, coughing up a sob as her fingers dig into Adora's.

"Yeah... tell me about it..."

"I'm so sorry, Catra..."

Adora pulls Catra in gently as she cries now, clinging to Adora's back like the frightened child she'd been ten years earlier. Adora curls both hands over her shuddering back and holds her close.

But Catra doesn't let her stay near for long. Sniffling, she pushes Adora back, glancing at the dried blood on her shirt and face.

"Go get treated, you idiot."

"Huh? Oh... right..." Adora notes she'd smeared a bit of blood onto Catra's clothes as well. "Sorry about that. I'll go get cleaned up. Come with me, okay?"

"I don't need to-"

"Your arm, Catra."

Her injured arm is more or less limp at her side now. Catra grunts.

"It's fine. I don't need it treated."

"Then I guess I don't need my injuries treated either."

"You're so annoying."

With a soft growl, Catra pushes herself up to her feet. Adora staggers next to her, bumping against her side for support. Adora tries to reach for Catra's hand, but she's moved it out of range to grab onto her bruised wrist.

Together they limp to the infirmary, where the healer had already been notified of the situation. She cleans the blood from Adora's face, disinfects it, and patches it up with a bandage. She gives her a clean shirt to change into, then begins examining Catra's arm.

Catra typically hates the infirmary and won't stand to be treated "like a weakling," as she'd say. But this time she's too tired to protest. The most she can do is grunt and act begrudging when the healer gives her a bag of ice for her arm.

By the time Adora has changed and they are free to go, both girls feel the aching exhaustion weighing down on their limbs. They're silent as they traverse the hallways, unsure of whether or not they should return to the barracks to observe the rest of the fights, or simply retreat to the dorms to rest.

But before they can ask one another, a familiar person finds them.

"Ah, there you two are."

"Commander!" Adora says with a sharp salute that makes her wince. He chuckles.

"At ease, Cadet. No need for formalities. I came searching for you two so I could tell you to go get some rest. That was a very impressive fight."

Normally, both of them would be bursting at the seams to ask whether or not they'd passed, but as things are, they're both more tired than anything. He can tell, so he gives them their answer.

"I came to tell you that you both passed the first part of your exam. Adora, that was some excellent strategizing and use of your environment. And Catra, you demonstrated incredible speed, cunning, and strength. You both displayed the ruthless power and wit necessary to become fine Force Captains someday. You should be proud. Now get some rest. You've earned it." With this, he gives them a nod, then walks off.

And even in spite of everything else, Adora still has enough energy left to be a little excited.

"We... we passed, Catra! Both of us!" She slumps into her partner's side in her relief. "Oh, thank Hordak..."

Catra lowers her gaze, and doesn't look at her.

"Yeah. Congrats."

"Congrats to you, too," Adora says softly. "Aren't you happy?"

Catra doesn't look up.

"I just... wanna go to bed..."

Adora's heart sinks. She's tired too, but she'd at least hoped Catra would be a bit excited about passing their exam together. But she can't really blame her. She steps a little closer to her, letting their shoulders brush.

"Let's go get some supper."

But Catra shies away.

"You go. I'm going to bed."

"Catra-"

"Go."

Catra doesn't give her much of a choice. She turns away and starts limping off on her own.

The last thing Adora wants is to leave her alone right now when she knows Catra is feeling guilty for hurting her. But at the very least she wants to bring her some food and water.

So Adora hurries to the mess hall alone, and is surprised to be greeted by so many words of congratulations. Other cadets are there, even her seniors, who compliment her fighting. Adora smiles at their praise as she grabs a tray of food and munches away a quick supper.

But it hurts knowing Catra is receiving none of this praise like she deserves.

After about ten minutes of eating and talking, Adora excuses herself, blaming her need to leave on her soreness. She takes a tray of food back to the dorms for Catra.

It's still early, so the beds are empty. Even her own.

Adora places the tray down on the floor and scans the room a bit frantically.

"Catra? Are you here?"

 _Maybe she went for a walk to clear her head... No, she's in too much pain for that. Did she collapse somewhere on her way back? I never should have left her-_

"Catra? Catra-?"

A raspy, tired voice cuts her off.

"Pipe down, would ya?"

Adora perks up and whirls around. She'd only ever known Catra to sleep down with her on the bottom bunk. Never in all their years together since obtaining bunk beds, has Catra opted to sleep on her own top mattress. Adora hadn't even considered to check there.

Now, her tone rises in relief.

"Catra!"

"I said be quiet," she sighs. "You're so loud, Adora."

"Oh, sorry."

Adora lowers her voice and steps closer to the beds. She can smell a faint scent of soap and assumes Catra had taken a brief bath beforehand. She peers up over the edge, but Catra has curled herself up into a ball in the middle of the mattress and Adora can only see her back.

She's quiet for a moment, hoping she'll say something, but when she doesn't, Adora feels the need to ask.

"So... what are you doing...?"

A grunt and a huff.

"What's it look like? I'm _trying_ to sleep."

"I know, but... why up there?"

A pause.

"This _is_ my bed, isn't it?"

Adora feels a pang go through her chest.

"Well, yeah, but-"

"So let me sleep then."

Adora is at a loss. She takes a step back and tries another method to get her down.

"I brought you some food."

"Thanks. Don't want it."

Adora sighs. She really should've known better. Maybe giving Catra a bit more time will help.

"Well, if you change your mind it's here. I'm gonna go take a shower."

"Enjoy."

The curt answers are typical of Catra when she's irked or tired or brooding, or all three. But this time Adora's more worried about her than usual. She's never slept on that other bed before.

Adora doesn't like it. She hopes that by the time she's out of the bathroom, Catra will have moved back down.

But once Adora has washed off the grime and sweat of the fight, dried her hair, and changed into more comfortable clothes, she returns to the dorms to find Catra hasn't budged an inch, and the food is untouched. She isn't sure which is more concerning.

She makes her way back to the bunks and tries to look up, but all she can see is the same unmoving bundle.

"Catra...?"

No answer - not even a grunt of response. Adora sighs and sits heavily down on her own bed. She lies down, forgetting all about the bandaged side of her face until she rests it against her pillow and winces. She has to turn onto her other side.

It feels so strange not having Catra's presence at the foot of her bed. Adora can't get comfortable without her.

Before long, the other cadets file in and get ready for bed. Everyone is discussing the one-on-one fights, and Adora hears hers and Catra's names mentioned several times. She isn't sure if Catra is asleep or listening, but something tells her it's the latter.

Adora can assume Catra is feeling just as miserable as she is right now, if not more. Probably more.

Adora just tries to drown all the voices out and go to sleep.

But it isn't all the noise and movement that prevents her from resting. It's her lack of companionship. She hates shifting her legs and not feeling Catra's weight there. She hates rolling over and not feeling her warmth.

By the time the room as fallen dark and quiet, Adora still hasn't fallen asleep. From what she can discern, Catra hasn't moved or made a sound, but she's definitely still awake too.

Adora waits a while longer, hoping Catra will eventually give up and jump down to join her.

But the longer she waits, the more difficult it is try and relax. In fact, every second she's lying here without Catra beside her is making her more and more anxious.

It takes her a long time to come to a certain realization; she doesn't have to expect Catra to do everything. There's nothing stopping Adora from going to _her_.

So Adora pushes her blankets off herself and slides off her mattress. She grabs hold of the ladder that leads to Catra's bunk and slowly beings climbing.

Right away, she hears Catra shifting, curling more tightly into a ball, and then a soft growl. Adora peers over the edge of the bed.

"Catra? It's me."

The growl edges into her partner's voice.

"Yeah, I _know_. What are you doing?"

Adora waits where she is, not wanting to encroach on her space too quickly, or at all if Catra doesn't want it.

"I just thought you could use some company..."

Catra is silent for a moment. Adora can just barely make out the glint of her eyes and the swishing of her tail in the darkness. Then, a huff.

"Speak for yourself."

Adora offers a tiny smile and begins pulling herself up onto the bed. Catra hardly moves to make room for her, but at least she isn't pushing her off.

Adora decides to sleep her way for a change. She grabs the blanket to drape over them both a little, but instead of lying down like she normally does, she curls up like Catra instead. Pressing her chest against her partner's back, Adora encircles both arms around Catra's stomach and pulls her close.

It feels a little weird sleeping halfway down the bed and in such an odd position, but it isn't bad.

Catra makes a few grunts of protest here and there, but eventually she grows quiet and accepts the fact that she won't be sleeping alone tonight.

Not that she'd ever really wanted to. But Adora knows she'd felt like she'd deserved it.

Adora can't see her friend's expression since she's behind her, but she can tell exactly how Catra is feeling based off the rest of her body. Her tapping tail eventually stills and lays limply back across Adora's side, and the tension drains from her muscles.

Adora moves one of her hands up to touch Catra's bruised arm, running her fingertips very gently over her skin. And even though Catra doesn't even let half a breath's worth of a purr slip all the while, Adora's just glad she isn't chasing her off.

She presses up to her back more closely and hugs her a little tighter. Catra doesn't budge. Adora can feel that her partner's breathing is stiff and uncomfortable, as though there's so much weighing on her mind she can't relax even if she wants to. Adora buries her face into Catra's mane of hair and speaks softly.

"Hey, we both passed today. That's pretty great. Actually, that's _really_ great. Now we're one step closer to becoming Force Captains together."

It takes a moment, but Catra eventually offers a half-hearted reply.

"Yeah..."

"...Catra-"

"Enough, Adora. Just go to bed."

Catra shuts her down, and Adora can't tell if it's a good thing or a bad thing. If Catra accepted everything that had happened today and just wanted to sleep, Adora would gladly let her.

But some part of her feels it's not that. Catra is just too upset to talk about it right now. The last thing Adora wants is for that misery to mount and fester inside of her until it breaks her.

She hugs Catra again and tries one last time.

"Catra, please-"

"Goodnight, Adora."

Adora has never wanted to push or pressure her, and she isn't going to start now. She just sighs and curls around her as best she can.

"Night, Catra."

And it's about to be the longest night of their lives.

* * *

 **A/N: It was so satisfying to write Adora standing up to Shadow-Weaver. I hope one day she does it in canon and gives her a good punch...**

 **This is Adora's first time standing up to Shadow-Weaver, and Catra's first time sleeping on her own bunk ;v;**

 **Please review!**


	11. Midnight Truths

**This chapter will continue the previous chapter's trend of 'Adora giving speeches to put people in their place' only this time it isn't Shadow-Weaver, and it isn't done in anger.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 11. Midnight Truths

It's dark. Even for Catra. Her keen eyes that are much sharper in the darkness than most people's aren't doing her any good this time around.

She isn't sure where she is, but she knows it has to be somewhere within the Fright Zone. After all, she's never been anywhere else.

She can't discern which way is traversable, so she just chooses a direction and starts walking.

She can hear something, but she can't figure out what. It's just a distant, low humming sound, almost like a growl. It's monotonous and unrelenting. It makes her ears tremble enough to flatten.

As she walks, the sound gets loud enough that it makes her head ache, so she turns away and tries to go elsewhere. Out of the corner of her eye, she spots something, but when she turns it's gone. She isn't even sure what it had been other than a flash of movement. She can't discern a shape or size or color. She can't be sure about anything.

The droning sound continues as she walks, her body curving down slightly into a natural, defensive crouch. The noise keeps throwing off her senses, making her skull buzz and her eyes pound.

At some point it'd gotten cold, so she crosses her arms tightly over her chest. She keeps seeing something out of the corner of her eye, but she can never tell what. All she knows is that it's getting closer.

She walks a little faster, and the movement actually stops for a time. For a while, only the droning sound vibrates in the back of her head and the pit of her stomach. But then something moves again. She swallows back a hiss and digs her claws into her skin.

Before she knows it she's running.

Whatever it is never comes quickly. It's always just small flashes out of her peripheral vision, barely anything at all, but just enough. She runs, so focused on trying to avoid or escape whatever is pursuing her she never thinks to consider anything else.

The next thing she knows the floor has fallen away and her feet go straight through into nothing. She screams, but only the loud droning sound can be heard. She feels the terror of the fall into complete darkness, but she's numbed by the landing. She wants to lie there, but another shift in motion has her scrambling up to run once again.

That's when she starts tasting the blood.

At first it's just a slight rustic tang on the back of her tongue or the roof of her mouth. But then it's in between her teeth, lining her gums, coming back no matter how much she swallows. Eventually it starts to drip from her lips, and she can feel it seeping into her clothes.

The sound gets louder, and another flash of something catches her eye. She coughs, and the darkness suddenly turns bright red.

And she screams again, but no one hears.

* * *

Adora tends to toss and turn in her sleep if she's having a nightmare. She knows this, because she'd often twitch or kick Catra at the foot of the bed by accident and wake her.

But she knows Catra is the opposite. She doesn't thrash around, but there are still telltale signs.

Adora wakes in the middle of the night because she senses something isn't right. She's still curled around Catra on the top bunk, but despite being covered by the blankets, Catra is still shivering. Her pulse is thudding hard and fast in her chest, and Adora can feel it. She hugs Catra a little tighter, nuzzling against the thick hair against the nape of her neck. She's quiet for a moment, hoping it'll pass.

But Catra's condition doesn't improve, so Adora has no choice but to wake her. She eases back and sits herself up a little, reaching out to gently caress her face.

"Catra?"

She curls her fingers back through Catra's bangs and over her quivering ear, stroking the fur softly. Catra flinches, but doesn't wake. Adora runs her hand down her shoulder and rubs her back in steady circles.

"Catra? Catra, wake up."

It takes a couple more shakes, but eventually Catra jolts. Her eyes open wide and wild at the height of her panic, as she instinctively pushes herself up, still frightened that whatever had been in her nightmare was still here.

Adora finds her hand and holds it firmly.

"It's okay. It was just a dream."

When Catra looks up and recognizes her, she almost whimpers with relief.

"Adora..."

"The one and only," she smiles. "You okay?"

Catra inches away a little, though her hand is still in Adora's.

"Yeah."

Adora pulls her back in.

"I don't believe you. C'mere."

She pulls Catra in closer and opens her arms to wrap her back up in them.

Catra is tense at first; Adora knows she hates to show weakness more than anything.

But in the middle of the night, when it's only Adora who can see her, Catra eventually breaks. Her claws find their way softly over Adora's back and curl into her shirt. She hides her face in the crook of Adora's neck. Her ear brushes against what should be the soft skin of Adora's cheek, but instead it now touches the rougher covering of the bandage that's there. She tries to keep her voice down, but it isn't long before tiny sobs begin tumbling out.

"Sorry..."

Adora hugs her closer and hushes her. She can still feel Catra's heart racing from the night terror, and it isn't long before she can feel drops of dampness forming on her shirt collar.

Adora gathers Catra into her arms and slowly lies them both down again, covering them with the blankets as much as she can.

Catra clings to her weakly, not like a ferocious Force Cadet, but like the frightened child she'd once been. She may have changed in many ways over the years, but there were some things Adora felt would never quite change. Like how she was always quick to blame herself – in her heart if not on the surface – and how she tended to suffer all alone in silence because she didn't want to drag anyone else down with her.

Adora had been trying all these years to let her know she didn't mind sinking with her a little bit, because Adora would always find a way back to the surface in time.

She lets Catra hide in her arms now, shaking and sobbing so quietly it's barely noticeable at all. Adora wishes they could go somewhere where Catra could scream as loud as she wanted, just to liberate some of the stifling pressure. But for now, she hopes this is good enough.

It's like that for a while. Adora continues petting up and down her back in soothing motions. Catra's tail finds its way across her hip as always as she holds onto Adora in every way she possibly can. Adora can feel the damp spot on her shoulder expanding, still.

"Hey..." she murmurs. "Do you wanna talk about it...? I'll listen."

But Catra shakes her head.

"No. Not really..."

"Okay. Then try not to think about it. Just try to-"

" _How_ -?!" Catra's rasp of a voice suddenly rises in a low shout. She pushes herself away and glares up at Adora in the darkness with both of her mis-matched eyes drowning. "How can I just try not to think about it, Adora? It's all I _ever_ think about anymore..."

Startled, and fearing Catra might try to leave her again, Adora moves close, taking her hand.

"What? What's all you ever think about?"

Catra hisses, but Adora can tell it isn't at her. She looks away, but her hand betrays her true feelings as it squeezes Adora's in turn.

"All of it," she confesses. "How all I ever do is hurt you. How Shadow-Weaver's been right from the start. You're better off without me to screw you up. You'd be a Force Commander by now if it weren't for me-"

"Hey!" Adora snaps sharply enough to cut her partner off. Catra's eyes widen in shock as the words die on her tongue. Adora glares back at her in disapproval. "What the heck are you saying? Since when is hurting me all you ever do? What about all the times you've saved my ass from falling off a cliff or into a pit? What about all the times you've sat there and listened to me yammer on about whatever was on my mind? What about the times I was sick and you brought me supper? What about all the times you've covered my blindside and taken a hit for me?"

She pulls Catra a little closer again, but never once looks away from her eyes.

"You've hurt me, like... maybe two times, Catra. By accident. And I've hurt you, too. So don't just go deciding by yourself that you're no good, or that you're a bad friend or partner, or that all you ever do is hurt people. And don't listen to Shadow-Weaver, either. She doesn't know crap about you. She just likes to scare people into submission so no one's willing to challenge her. I bet she only picks on you because she's scared you're gonna be the one to surpass her one day."

Adora holds Catra's tearful, disbelieving gaze for a moment longer before pulling her back into her arms and lowering her voice.

"Remember? It doesn't matter what anyone does to us. We'll look out for each other. But if you're going to just keep thinking something dumb like I don't deserve you, or that all you ever do is hurt me... then how are you going to keep your promise? You can't look out for me if you're gone, Catra."

She finishes with somewhat of a huff and locks both arms around her partner almost defiantly. She hears Catra whimper once again, a sound that's clogged in the back of her throat.

But in spite of everything, Catra returns the embrace. Moving her injured arm still makes her flinch, but the pain won't stop her. It never has before, and it certainly won't start now. She huddles into Adora's chest and lets out a shaking breath, though when she finally does speak, Adora can hear a tiny smirk in her voice.

"Sap..."

Adora rolls her eyes.

"Look who's talking."

Adora hugs her quietly for a moment, pulling the blankets the rest of the way up over Catra's back, on account of she's still shaking slightly. She feels the claws still digging lightly into her shirt, feels the tail still tapping at her hip.

But what worries her the most is that there's no purr – not even the beginnings of a rumble. Without that, she knows something is still wrong.

Adora waits for a moment longer, until Catra's pulse has slowed and the shaking has mostly stopped. She rests a hand on her shoulder and slowly traces her palm down Catra's arm to her elbow, and eventually her bruised forearm. She rubs the injury very softly, soft enough that Catra doesn't even flinch.

"Hey..." She nestles her face gently into Catra's hair, brushing her nose against the soft fur of her ear. "You okay?"

Catra heaves a sigh against her, but when she exhales it feels steady.

"Maybe... You?"

"Probably."

"...How's your face?"

"What, am I _that_ ugly, Catra?"

"Listen, smart-ass-"

"Okay, it was a joke, I'm sorry!" Adora chuckles and ruffles her friend's hair a little before lowering her tone. "It's fine, Catra. Honestly. It doesn't even hurt."

She hears a soft grunt, then feels a hand on the bandaged side of her face. She looks down into Catra's eyes with earnest ones, ensuring she isn't lying about the statement.

The only pain she sees is in Catra's gaze.

The hand on Adora's cheek begins to quiver before Catra pulls it away.

"I'm-"

"Hey, enough of that." Adora doesn't let her finish. She pulls Catra in close again, letting her hide beneath the blankets and in Adora's arms. "It's okay, Catra. It's really, really okay. I wouldn't lie to you. Not about something like this."

She hears a sniffle, but a bit of spunk comes back into Catra's voice.

"Oh? So you've lied to me about _other_ things?"

" _You_ haven't?"

"...Shut up."

Adora laughs.

"Yes, I've lied to you _tons_ , Catra. Like the time I said the tuna in the mess hall was spoiled, so you didn't have any all evening and you just pouted _the whole time_."

"Wait, _what?!_ That was a lie? So the tuna was perfectly fine?"

"I mean-"

"Why you-"

Adora chuckles again.

"I'm sorry! You're just so cute when you pout like that! Besides, you got to eat, like, three tuna sandwiches the next day, right?"

Catra just growls softly and buries her face, clearly pouting more. Adora nuzzles into her hair.

"Can you ever forgive me for lying about the tuna?"

"I guess... Cuz remember that time you asked me if the outfit you chose looked 'Force Captain-worthy'?"

Adora fakes a gasp of betrayal.

"You didn't!"

"Yeah, I lied. It looked terrible."

"Catraaaa!"

Adora's feigned whining actually earns a brief chuckle from her partner.

"You're such a dork," Catra mutters.

"Yeah, yeah..."

Adora lets out a sigh, relieved Catra seems to be feeling better for the most part. But after their bout of giggles fades, Catra grows unnaturally silent once again. Adora holds her for a while longer, rubbing up and down her back as Catra sighs against her. Her tail has gone limp, and her pulse has slowed, but Adora can't tell if it's because she's tired, or for some other reason. Tentatively, she brushes the backs of her nails over Catra's ear and down through her hair.

"Catra...? Are you-?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Let's just go to bed..."

Somehow Adora isn't fully convinced, but it's already past midnight. Hopefully, if Catra can get some restful sleep without the nightmares, she might feel better tomorrow.

"Okay," she agrees, albeit a little reluctantly. "But... Catra, if there's something wrong-"

"I'll tell you," she mutters. "I got it, Adora."

"Really? Please, Catra. I mean it." She hugs her a little tighter, and her voice falls into the tiniest whisper, only for Catra's ears. "I care about you, Catra. Don't ever forget that."

There's a beat of silence, and Adora tenses up. But then she feels Catra give her a hearty squeeze in return, an embrace that says more than her stubborn words ever could.

"Idiot. I _know_ that..."

That's what her mouth says. But her arms say something softer. 'Thank you.'

Adora smiles and makes sure Catra is as snug as she can possibly be in this curled-up position. Even Adora's body has learned to get comfortable like this by now. Catra burrows into her collar while Adora rests her chin on her best friend's shoulder, nestling into her hair.

"Goodnight, Catra."

There's a sigh, and then the response, like always.

"Night, Adora."

She sounds about as tired as Adora feels. She hopes Catra will be able to sleep more easily now for the remainder of the night.

Adora closes her eyes at long last, letting herself relax against her partner. Catra's pulse beats softly up against her chest. And it's barely noticeable at all, but Adora can feel the faintest rumblings of a tiny, timid purr as well. She knows Catra is hardly in any mood for that tonight, but she's still trying anyway, because she knows how much Adora likes it.

Adora reciprocates by planting a small kiss on Catra's temple, so light that it probably goes unnoticed thanks to the wild thickness of Catra's hair. But the purr gets just a little bit louder, so she knows the sentiment at least is appreciated.

Adora makes sure to stay awake until she's completely certain Catra has fallen asleep first. She waits for a while, making sure she's resting peacefully before she allows herself the same luxury. Eventually, she's confident in the fact that Catra is sleeping soundly.

Adora finally drifts off after her, brushing her bandaged cheek against Catra's neck.

The soft little purr dies off before long, but Adora thinks nothing of it.

* * *

 **A/N: I really hate myself for writing all this deep, emotional, almost romantic dialogue between them claiming it's pre-series, knowing full-well what the series does to them (and what they do to betray each other). Ugh.**

 **Please review!**


	12. Licking Wounds

**So we already had a chapter where Catra 'took care' of a sick Adora, so I'm just evening the playing field here. This is Catra's first time getting sick.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 12. Licking Wounds

Adora wakes puzzled the next morning – and for good reason. She feels well-rested enough, even though she hadn't gone to bed until much later than usual last night, which makes her think she might've slept in a bit.

But that's impossible, because the usual wake-up calls for all the cadets would have roused anyone, even her.

Oddly enough, what's most disconcerting to her now as her consciousness comes back to her, is the knowledge that Catra is still there beside her. She can count on one hand how many times Catra had woken up after her. She's _always_ up first, either stretching or filing her nails or simply keeping a silent vigil. Usually it's the latter, because Adora's woken up nearly every day of her life since meeting Catra to find her squatting at the foot of the bed staring at her, waiting for her to wake.

So Adora knows right away that something is wrong this morning. She can still feel Catra curled up against her chest, the same position they'd both fallen asleep in last night.

She isn't snoring softly like usual either. Instead, Catra is oddly quiet. She's breathing, but it's thin and rasping.

Adora finally opens her eyes to find the room dimly-lit by the usual lanterns, with gray early-morning light seeping in through the few high windows. On a normal day, Catra would definitely be up already by now.

Adora eases herself back a little to glimpse her friend's face. Catra's expression doesn't seem troubled, but it doesn't seem relaxed either. It's at a neutral exhaustion somewhere in between. Her ears are more flattened than anything, and her tail is limp and unmoving across Adora's hip. Adora feels the concern in her stomach tightening into a knot.

"Catra...?"

She reaches out slowly, petting her palm over Catra's soft ear and messy hair. Right away, she can feel a bit of heat coming from her fur. When Adora brushes the back of her hand across Catra's forehead, she feels more heat. It isn't a high fever, but it's a fever nonetheless.

She can barely even remember the last time Catra had gotten sick. It must have been half a decade ago, and she'd only caught the cold because she'd fallen into a pond during an excursion. Even that cold had only been sneezes and a runny nose for her, but Adora can already tell the sickness she's suffering now is different.

Catra's skin is slightly damp with sweat, and the smallest tears are clinging to the corners of her eyes. Her breath is thin and shallow, and when Adora puts a hand to her chest, she finds Catra's pulse is a rapid, heavy contrast. It must've been a combination of yesterday's stress and the inability to get enough proper rest.

Adora feels a pang go through her chest as she looks her partner over.

"Oh, Catra..."

She's never seen her like this before, distressed and weak just in her sleep. Adora wants to let her rest, but not if it's only trapping Catra in her unconscious discomfort.

Adora cups her friend's face gently before pulling herself close, wrapping Catra in a loose embrace. She can feel her shivering ever so slightly, and her heartbeat is a drumming impact that feels like it must hurt.

Adora doesn't want to leave her – in fact that's the last thing she wants to do – but she mentally justifies it.

 _If I can just get away for a minute now, I won't have to leave her for the rest of the day_.

So she eases back slowly, combing her fingers through Catra's hair, flinching at the contrast of her warm skin and the cold metal of her headpiece. She leaves a small kiss on Catra's forehead before shifting away, making sure to bundle Catra up in loose blankets.

Adora moves slowly so as not to rouse her, stretching out a bit before slipping off the top bunk. Everyone else is still asleep, so she treads quickly and quietly.

Once she's reached the exits, she holds a brief conversation with one of the guards stationed there, and once she's granted permission she hurries out to find the person she's seeking.

At this early hour, the Force Commanders are typically at the mess hall eating before their cadets can get there. Adora spots the familiar blue skin of her own Commander and hurries in to where a group of them are chatting. Once her presence is noticed, Adora bows sharply, apologizes for her interruption, and calls her Commander aside privately. He's confused, but not upset to see her at his breakfast.

"What seems to be the issue, Cadet? You're never out and about so early for no good reason."

"Yes, sir. You see... I just wanted to let you know that Catra and I might have to take today off, too. We're just not feeling so great. I'm really sorry. I know you let us pass our exam yesterday and we should be starting even more training today, but we just-"

"At ease, Cadet," he smiles. "First of all, I didn't _let_ the two of you pass your exam. You both earned that pass. And second of all, I can understand you and Catra needing a day to recover. It was a splendid fight indeed, but it was a difficult one, I'm sure. Just be sure to be back in training by tomorrow."

Adora perks up. He's always been so understanding.

"Thank you, sir. We'll definitely be back soon!" With a salute and another bow, Adora hurries off back to the dorms.

The wake-up alarms haven't gone off yet, but other cadets are already beginning to stir. Adora hurries back to her bed, kicks off her shoes, and climbs back up to where Catra is still curled beneath the blankets.

She tries to move carefully, but the mattress ends up creaking beneath her weight. Catra's ear flicks, and then with a throaty moan her eyes blink open. Adora bites her lips.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. Go back to sleep."

Catra sits herself up slowly, her hair and clothes a mess. Even in spite of the blanket across her shoulders she's still shivering slightly, but her eyes strive for defiance.

"What are you talking about?" she tries to snap. "We've gotta get ready..."

Her eyes glaze over suddenly from a bout of dizziness, and Catra sways. Adora lunges forward to help hold her up. She still feels unnaturally warm, and her breathing is harsh.

"Not today," Adora says firmly. "We've already been cleared to take the day off. We're just going to rest and recuperate."

"What? I don't _need_ to-"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than Catra feels another wave of nausea and puts a hand to her head. Adora rubs up and down her back softly.

"See what I mean? Neither of us are really in any shape to be training today, anyway."

Catra gives an annoyed glare, but she's too tired for it to have any force behind it. She heaves a sigh and ends up slouching against Adora, pouting.

"So what's that mean? You're sick, too?"

"Mm, nah. I'm fine. But I just don't feel like going. Especially if it means leaving you here alone all day."

Catra is quiet for a moment, pulling the blanket up a little higher over her shoulder. Adora closes her eyes for a moment and presses close. Catra sighs and clears her throat.

"You should go."

"Huh?"

"To training." Catra pulls herself away so she can look seriously into Adora's eyes. "You don't need to stay here and babysit me all day. You should be training so you can get one step closer to becoming Force Captain." She flops quietly down onto the bed and curls up. "I'll be fine, so just go."

Adora is speechless for a moment, but though the air is a little chilly, her heart is warm. She knows Catra's only saying it for Adora's sake. If she's feeling as miserable as she looks, she probably wants nothing more than for Adora to stay with her today, but she's putting herself second like always.

She knows better than anyone that becoming Force Captain is Adora's dream, and she doesn't want to stand in the way of that.

Adora smiles and crawls forward before slowly lying down beside Catra, wrapping both arms around her like she'd done last night.

"Thanks, Catra. I mean it. But I wanna stay with you today. That's more important to me."

Catra rasps a scoff and ducks her face into the blanket.

"You're such a sap."

And yet her swishing tail gives away her true feelings. Adora smiles and just curls up with her without another word.

The alarms sound a few minutes later, and Adora feels Catra tense up instinctively. She squeezes her a little bit to remind her she doesn't have to get up today.

They remain quiet and still as everyone else shuffles about beneath them, and the early-morning chatter begins. Adora listens in case any of her teammates calls up for her, but no one does. She assumes they all can guess the two of them will be taking it easy today because of yesterday's match. No one needs to know Catra is sick on top of it.

After half an hour or so, the commotion dies down until the last of the other cadets have left the dorms for breakfast. Adora can feel for herself that Catra has already drifted back off to sleep. She doesn't want to wake her, so she decides they can eat later whenever Catra is up for it.

So for now, Adora simply rests beside her, hugging her from behind to ensure she stays warm. Catra still shivers a bit in her sleep. Her pulse is still quick and her skin is still warm from the fever. Adora keeps her consciousness balanced between asleep and awake just to stay on alert in case something happens.

At one point she feels Catra shift, turning over to face Adora now, though her eyes are still closed and her forehead is damp with sweat. She makes a soft moan in the back of her throat.

"Adora..."

Adora runs a hand back through her bangs as best she can.

"Catra? What's wrong?" She isn't even sure if she's fully conscious or not. Catra just moans again, both hands reaching out now to make a feeble purchase on Adora's shirt.

"Stay..."

Adora's heart throbs. Half an hour ago Catra was telling her to go. The fever's making her honest side emerge.

Adora gently reaches up to brush her fingers over Catra's metal headpiece that she rarely ever removes. Adora slips it off now, seeing the impression it leaves along her hairline and temples. She places it aside, only to find even more sweat beaded there on Catra's skin. Adora wipes her sleeve over her partner's forehead a little, then presses a soft kiss to her hair.

"Of course I'm staying, dummy."

Catra lets out a sigh that almost has a purr in it, but it sounds too tired to manage the full sound.

Adora curls both arms around her now, letting her fingers run through Catra's hair. She rubs her shoulders softly, adjusting the blankets until Catra isn't shivering quite so much. She massages her ears for her, scratching them gently until it elicits the tiniest rumble from Catra's chest. It only lasts for about a minute though, and after that Catra grows quiet again.

Adora hugs her close and opts to rest with her for a while. She alternates between dozing off and waking up to wipe the sweat from Catra's forehead.

It hurts to have to see her like this. Ever since she'd broken out of her shell, Catra had been full of zeal and energy for just about everything she did. She was always quick to argue and fight back, always eager to go out and explore, even if it meant sneaking away.

But now she's so quiet, so frail. Her heartbeat is still fast and thick from the sickness, and it makes her whole body quiver. She has to breathe through her mouth, which only sounds painful and distressed.

Eventually it gets to the point where Adora can't stay quiet any longer. Fearing Catra is suffering a nightmare again, she gently shakes her shoulder.

"Catra...?"

Catra makes the most pitiable sound in the back of her throat as she comes to, somewhere between a whimper and a whine. Her blue eye blinks open first, then the yellow.

Adora feels a pang in her chest again.

Catra just looks... so tired. So weak...

But she can't ever let her know she thinks that. She clears her throat and braces herself up on her elbows, gingerly combing through her partner's thick hair.

"Hey. Sorry I woke you. It didn't seem like you were really having a restful nap."

"Yeah..." she grumbles. "Not really."

"...Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really."

"Right. Well then, how about some lunch? You won't get better on an empty stomach."

Catra sighs but nods, tucking her face back into the blankets. Adora smiles a little and sits up.

"Great. I'll go bring you something, so you just sit tight."

Catra just grunts and hides further. Adora knows she's embarrassed and that she probably feels helpless and guilty. So she makes sure to make it sound like she isn't just doing this for Catra's sake.

"Yeah, I was getting hungry anyway, so I might as well bring you back something."

She isn't sure if Catra is onto her or not, but her partner huffs again.

Adora slips her legs over the edge of the bunk and jumps off, then heads straight for the mess hall. Breakfast has already passed, so there's no one inside. She grabs a tray and piles it with fruits, bread, and fish. She takes two bottles of water as well and then hurries back to the dorms before anyone can notice her.

She makes it back without a hitch, but that's when her next challenge stares her in the face. She doesn't want to make Catra come down, but she doesn't know how she's going to get everything up to her.

Adora pauses at the bottom of the beds and looks up. She can't reach to place the tray on the top bunk first and then climb up herself.

So she just tries to climb while holding onto everything, using the spokes of the ladder to support the tray and her weight. She inches her way up until she successfully manages to drop the tray onto the bed.

"Hah! Whoa-"

But after letting go of the tray she can't grab onto anything quickly enough, and feels her weight falling backward. She closes her eyes, waiting to hit the floor and give herself the ultimate headache.

But before it can happen there's a hand around her wrist. She blinks her eyes open to find Catra leaning halfway out of the bed over her, clinging to the mattress with the claws of her other hand.

"Idiot! If you'd told me, I would've just come down!"

"I didn't wanna make you do that."

"So instead you'd rather nearly fall off and give yourself a concussion and me a heart-attack?"

"Well, when you put it that way..."

Catra growls and yanks her up the rest of the way, tail lashing.

Adora sighs.

"Thanks."

"Idiot."

They get their bearings and sit on either side of the tray to begin picking at the food.

Adora isn't all that surprised that she's the one eating more. Catra manages a bit of the fish and some apple slices, but not much more. Adora makes her drink the whole water bottle, at the very least, then wets a napkin with her own and wipes her friend's forehead with it. Catra shivers again. Adora drapes a blanket over her shoulders.

"How're you feeling?"

"Like crap," she sighs. "But less like crap than I did before, I guess."

"Well, that's good. Wanna try a quick shower? It might help the fever."

Catra sighs again, but nods.

Adora jumps down first. Catra hands her the tray, which Adora puts aside for cleanup, then reaches up to help Catra.

"Please don't jump," she begs. "Just take it easy."

Catra grunts, but obeys, which confirms she probably isn't feeling up to the athletics anyway. Adora supports her as she climbs down the ladder.

Once she's down, Adora wraps an arm around her back and bumps their heads together lightly. They take it slow on their way to the bathrooms. Adora guides her to the stalls.

"Need any help?"

Catra scoffs.

"I'm _good_ , thanks."

"Just checking!"

They remove their outer layers of clothing until they're down to the under-wraps. Adora prepares some towels and begins running warm water in the nearest stall. Catra's already shaking with so much skin exposed now. She wraps her tail around her waist and hugs herself.

Adora can very clearly see the bruises on her forearm now; bruises she herself had inflicted in yesterday's match.

Adora feels it's only fair she exposes her own injury as well. She peels the bandage off the side of her face and tosses it in a nearby waste bin. She can feel the four scratches stinging a bit now that they're exposed to the raw air. When Catra looks up at her she flinches slightly, but Adora just smiles.

"How's it look? Do I look cool?"

The guilt fades from Catra's gaze, and instead she scoffs.

"Yeah, you wish."

Adora slings an arm around her shoulders, and together they head into the stall.

The shower is warm, and even Catra who was never a big fan of water eases into it this time. There's a little bench jutting from the wall, and Adora has her sit on it.

"Just take it easy. I'll wash your hair for you. Like old times!"

Catra grumbles again, but doesn't argue.

Adora gets right to work, lathering shampoo in her hands before she gets to digging through Catra's thick mane. She's still very careful around her ears though, cupping them gently and scratching lightly through the fur.

She washes Catra's hair for her and then rinses it, and in spite of the water and the fever she can feel the vibrations of a purr rolling across Catra's shoulders. Adora pulls out her own ponytail and then gets to washing her hair as well, while Catra starts washing the rest of herself with a rag.

Adora notices she doesn't use her left hand, and even moving it the wrong way causes her to flinch. So Adora makes sure to wash Catra's opposite arm and shoulder for her, so she won't have to use her sore hand.

It's a quiet shower. Usually they all bathe in different stalls, but it's nice to finally be together again, like they'd used to when they were younger. It's a little bittersweet, but for the most part it's calming.

Once they finally finish, Adora shuts off the water, then hurries out to fetch their towels. She wraps Catra up and snuggles up to her before she's playfully pawed away.

They dry off and re-dress, then head to the sinks.

"You should brush your teeth."

"Yeesh, I know that! You're such a nag."

"Hey, I'm just being hygienic here!"

They both brush their teeth side by side as always. Catra gives a little grin in the mirror to ensure her fangs are as perfect as ever. Adora's glad she's finally acting like her normal self again. But she still coaxes her close and rests their foreheads together to feel for her temperature.

"You're still a little warm, but I think if you can get a bit more rest, you can sleep it off."

"More sleep? Sounds good to me."

Adora can't tell if she's being so cooperative because she's tired from the fever, or because she's relaxed after the shower. Either way, Adora doesn't question it. She just takes Catra's hand and begins leading her back to the dorms.

It's only a short distance from the bathrooms. But even so, it's enough time for a certain sorceress to intercept them.

Catra senses her first when her fur begins to bristle, and she huffs under her breath.

"Oh, come _on_ -"

Adora looks up just in time to see Shadow-Weaver phase in seemingly out of nowhere. She blocks their path and curls her crooked fingers together with feigned interest.

"Why, good day to you, Cadets. You know I've been searching everywhere for you, only to discover you've taken the day off. Now, why is that?" She looks directly at Catra, but the girl looks away. Adora steps in quickly.

"Good morning, er, afternoon I guess, Shadow-Weaver. We were both just _super_ exhausted from the exam fights yesterday, and since we both passed, the Commander said it'd be fine for us to recuperate a bit! We'll be back in tomorrow!"

It isn't really a lie - she just isn't telling the _whole_ truth, either. She doesn't want to expose Catra for being sick, or else she can't even imagine how harshly Shadow-Weaver might degrade her.

Luckily, mention of the exam draws the sorceress' attention back to her favorite pupil.

"Ah, yes. The matches yesterday were a part of your exam on your way to senior cadets, no? I hear you did splendidly, Adora. I'm proud of you." She reaches out to pat her head gently.

Adora stays calm and quiet, even when she feels that hand gliding down to the scratches on her cheek. She hopes this will be the end of the conversation. But to her dismay, Shadow-Weaver turns back to Catra.

"How _you_ managed to pass as well, I'll never understand. But I suppose you did well in providing an adequate partner for Adora to show off her skills."

She lifts her hand and drops it rather roughly onto Catra's head next, letting her nails scrape across her ears. Catra hisses under her breath.

Adora feels that Shadow-Weaver knows full-well Catra is sick and is only trying to agitate her fever further. She'd decided years ago she wasn't going to let her hurt Catra anymore. So Adora pushes the sorceress' hand away from her partner and faces her sternly.

"You _know_ Catra passed her exam with flying colors just like I did. She's a great fighter, and everyone in the Horde knows it. You don't have to keep treating her like she's second-best. She's going to be a great Force Captain one day, and she's going to do amazing things just like I will."

Her grip on Catra's hand tightens, and she feels her return it.

"She's right," Catra growls. "I'm gonna do great things for the Horde, with or without your approval."

Adora hadn't expected Catra to refute Shadow-Weaver when she was still feeling unwell. But it just goes to show how much she's changed over the years, how much more confident she's become with Adora's support.

But Shadow-Weaver ignores her as always, and only addresses Adora.

"Still loyal as ever to your little pet, I see."

"Hey, she's not my-"

"Carry on then, my dear," the sorceress drawls. "I look forward to hearing about your progress once you've become a senior cadet."

"Hey! Wait a sec-"

But Adora finds herself calling out to nothing but shadows. She's never felt quite so furious at Shadow-Weaver before. She guesses it's because in the past she'd always been more afraid of her, but that's changed over time.

"How dare she. What the heck does she have against you, anyway?"

"Hell if I know," Catra shrugs. "But it's no different than how she usually is. You don't need to get so worked up over it. It's fine."

"It's not fine! It's _never_ been fine, Catra! ...And I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that..." She sighs, and her grip on Catra's hand loosens. "I'm sorry I... let her _bully_ you for so long. I was a coward. I couldn't even help-"

"You were a _kid_ ," Catra snaps. "And even though you were a kid, you still did whatever you could for me. I know that." Her expression softens into a sad smile, one that hurts Adora's heart. Catra readjusts her hold on her hand this time. "Come on. Let's go back."

Adora follows her back to the dorms, remembering she's supposed to be the one taking care of Catra today, but somehow it's turned around.

They make it back to the beds, but don't climb up to the top bunk this time. Adora pulls the blankets down from it, and they just curl up in their usual bottom bed together.

Catra just sighs and closes her eyes right away. Adora pulls her in and strokes between her ears softly. She knows Catra had been traumatized by Shadow-Weaver at a young age, when the sorceress had stolen a memory from her, and she'd continuously threatened her ever since. She hates having her head touched by anyone other than Adora.

So Adora brushes her fingers gently now, especially over her ears.

"You okay...?"

Catra nestles closer, hiding her face.

"Yeah. Let's just sleep."

It's almost exactly how they'd ended the previous night. Adora feels uneasy, but she can't do anything about it.

So she just plants a tiny kiss on top of Catra's head, closes her eyes, and hopes for the best.

* * *

 **A/N: I know that, given what we know from season 1, half the things I have Adora say/realize here don't make sense this early on in the scheme of things. Like the "I didn't mean to make you feel like you were second-best" stuff.**

 **I know she doesn't realize this stuff until later on down the road but like... I wanted to put it in here. I want to make Adora more aware of her position VS Catra's, though I guess in retrospect that only makes things more painful...**

 **Also, you might notice little shoutouts/references to my other Catradora fics sprinkled into here, such as the mention of Catra falling into a pond during an excursion, and Shadow-Weaver stealing a memory from her.**

 **Next chapter is the last one for this fic!**

 **Please review!**


	13. The Point Of No Return

**The final chapter is here. These two have been through so much throughout the course of this messy little fic of mine. I hope you enjoy the finale.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own She-Ra.**

* * *

Chapter 13. The Point Of No Return

Adora can't make sense of her surroundings.

There are shadows, like always, rising up out of the ground, dark and twisted.

There's a source of light coming from somewhere, but she can't even tell where that might be. It's a dull, eerie light, just barely enough for her to be able to make out the shapes of the shadows.

It feels like she's in the Fright Zone. She _has_ to be, right? There's nowhere else she's ever been, nowhere else she can possibly know of...

 _So why... can't I recognize anything...?_

She looks all around herself, but nothing looks familiar.

 _It's gotta be a dream. But how can I dream about a place I've never even been to before?_

There's no one else here that she can discern, no other movements or sounds other than a hiss of wind. It doesn't seem dangerous. So she begins to walk.

"Hello? Is anyone here? Catra?"

She knows that even if it's a dream, Catra's bound to be here with her.

But as things are, Adora finds herself alone.

She continues walking, though it doesn't feel like there's a ground beneath her feet. It feels like the world is swaying and shifting all around her. She doesn't even realize when the scenery changes.

One instant she's in the shadows of what she believes to be the Fright Zone, and the next she's out in some massive open wasteland. It's gray and misted over by a thick fog, and the sky is an unnerving orange color. When she looks up, she feels she can see things in the far far distance, like skiffs or other ships fighting, crashing, falling...

Suddenly, there's a bright flash of light, and the next things she sees are castles. Each one has a girl inside, people Adora has never seen before, with grayed-out faces and indiscernible characteristics. She can _see_ them, but she can't really make sense of them.

"What's going on?" she cries. "Who are you?"

But none of them acknowledge her.

Her head starts to spin. The orange sky suddenly turns dark, and the twisted shadows come back. There's a scream. One Adora knows all too well.

"Catra?!"

She whirls around in search of her, but the darkness is too great now. She tries to run, but she never gets anywhere. She can hear Catra's voice calling out, but she can't comprehend what she's saying. Adora can only tell that she's scared.

She tries to run towards her, feeling like she's only ever just a few inches away.

And then the light flashes again. Another voice speaks to her from the sky, and the image of an unknown white face appears in her mind.

 _"You must let go."_

It speaks as though it's an order, as though she doesn't have a choice.

Adora tries to run, but she can't get any closer to Catra or any farther from the voices. She shakes her head, and when she looks down there's something in her hand. A sword...

 _"Adora!"_

"Huh-?"

Her eyes fly open wide, but it isn't much different now than what she'd seen before. It's still dark with midnight, but one thing assures her this is the reality.

Catra is hovering over her with concern flaring in her eyes. Adora can't make out much, but she can tell that Catra is scared for her. Her hands are on Adora's shoulders, gripping tightly, but Adora can feel her shaking. With a moan, Adora shakes her head a bit.

"Catra...?"

An ounce of relief flashes across the blue and yellow gaze, but the concern remains most prominent. Even if she tries to sound like she doesn't care as much.

"Geez," she huffs. "You were squirming like a worm. Nearly kicked me off!"

"Sorry about that."

Catra gives her a look that's soft enough to let Adora know she isn't actually miffed about almost being knocked off the bed. She's just happy Adora's all right.

Catra slowly lowers herself down over her, and Adora wraps both arms around her back, letting the pressure of Catra's weight help ground her in reality. Catra tucks her face into Adora's shoulder.

"So what kind of dream was it...?" It's her way of asking if Adora wants to talk about it, just like Adora would always ask Catra whenever she had bad dreams.

Adora keeps both arms draped across her partner's back and moves her hands slowly in circles.

"I'm... not even sure if it _was_ a dream..."

Catra sighs.

"Geez, why do you have to get all cryptically technical on me? It's like 2 in the morning. Fine, what kind of _nightmare_ was it then?"

"No, that's not what I meant..." Adora tapers off, trying to find the right words. She can still see fragments of the images in her mind of the orange wasteland, the silhouettes of girls she'd never met before, the shape of that sword.

"It almost felt... like a vision..."

Catra scoffs.

"Ch. Please, Adora. You're not some prophet, okay? You're just tired and stressed."

"...Yeah... you're right." Adora wipes an arm across her forehead and draws in a deep breath, trying to push the fragmented images away.

There are still shadows of unrecognizable faces flashing across her mind, but Adora ignores them until the only one she can make sense of here and now is Catra's. Her eyes are still more concerned than her expression lets on, and her ears are drooping a little. Adora frowns.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"Liar. Then why are you shaking?" It's very slight, almost unnoticeable, but being pressed as close to Catra as she is, Adora can easily feel her quivering. She feels Catra stiffen too, as if trying to force herself to stop.

"I'm not-"

"Catra, come on. It's too late at night for this. Just tell me the truth. Do you still have a fever?"

Adora adjusts her hold on Catra, easing her back a few inches and curling a hand around to the nape of her neck. She guides Catra's face down toward hers and has Catra rest her forehead against hers for a moment.

All the while her partner is tense and trembling, but she doesn't feel as warm as she had earlier in the day from sickness. Adora rules out the fever, and takes a moment to be glad that it's gone.

But Catra is still shivering from something else that ails her. She refuses to say what, but Adora has her guesses.

"Did you have a bad dream, too...?"

She strokes her fingers softly through Catra's hair, and when she feels her suddenly draw in a sharp breath, she knows she's guessed correctly. Adora locks both arms around her in a firm hug.

"Dummy. You should've said something."

"It doesn't matter. It wasn't that bad."

"That's not what I'm gathering."

Adora braces her weight on her elbows and slowly pushes herself up, sitting up with Catra in her arms. She clears the loose clumps of hair from her friend's face and bumps their noses together. She feels Catra's tail timidly reach for her, curling around her waist like it does when she wants to be close to her.

Adora brushes her injured cheek against Catra's to feel a warm wetness residing on her skin. Considering the fever has passed, she knows it isn't sweat.

"Oh, Catra..."

She never cries nowadays, not even when she's alone with Adora. Even now, she can tell Catra is desperately trying to hold down bigger sobs, but all that comes up are tiny, breathless hiccups.

Adora takes Catra in her arms and lies her down gently onto her back, making sure her head uses as much of the pillow as possible. Adora pulls the blankets up over herself before lying down gently over her, reversing their positions from earlier.

"You don't _have_ to tell me about it," she mumbles. "But you _can_."

She rests her head against Catra's shoulder, letting her own weight settle over the shuddering body beneath. She feels Catra's hands clinging to the back of her shirt, the claws doing their best not to make contact with skin.

Adora always offers to listen to Catra's nightmares. But this is the first time she actually tells about them.

Catra draws in a deep breath, choking back the hiccups and swallowing more sobs before they can happen. When she does finally manage to find her voice, it's small and rasping.

"It was really dark... I couldn't find you..."

It's all she manages before Adora feels her grip tightening. Adora hugs her back as much as she can in turn.

"It sounds like mine," she murmurs.

Silence comes for a while between them, until Adora's racing mind and Catra's racing pulse have both slowed. Catra draws in one last unsteady breath, and Adora feels it tremble on the way out.

"I just... wanna get the hell outta this place..."

"I know."

"And I want you to come with me."

"I know..."

Adora's chest tightens. They both sense the uneasiness about this topic. All Catra's ever wanted was to be free of the Horde's command.

But over the years, Adora has longed to work her way up to Force Commander and eventually Captain. And while that would allow her to more or less set her own boundaries and go off across Etheria wherever she pleased, ultimately she would have to report back to the Horde. That isn't the life Catra wants, and Adora doesn't think it ever will be.

Following these paths might inevitably lead them to their parting. But...

"We made a promise," Adora whispers. "We promised we'd always be together. That we'd look out for each other. So that's what we're going to do. No matter what happens, we'll figure something out. Together."

Catra sniffles beneath her and doesn't say anything. Adora wonders if she believes her; and she wonders if _she_ believes in the words coming out of her own mouth.

Maybe that's why Catra's tears begin slipping free. Maybe it's because she doesn't fully believe Adora, either. Her chest begins to jolt, and her claws sink a little deeper into Adora's clothes. Her voice is nothing more than a thin whimper in her ear.

"You can't leave me... you promised..."

Adora's heart clenches. She pushes herself up slowly, reaching out to seek one of Catra's hands. Once she finds it she laces their fingers together and squeezes.

"I won't," she whispers. "I couldn't leave even if I wanted to, Catra. And I'll never _want_ to. I know that for sure."

Her free hand comes up to brush the tears from Catra's cheeks, catching them one by one as they fall.

She isn't really sure what happens after that. Something just stirs in her heart. Something that comes from the very bottom of her being, like dormant waters of a river finally breaking free to flow to the surface.

It feels a little scary, as if she's concerned about the sheer _power_ this emotion might contain. But for the most part, it's warm and pleasant.

Adora doesn't really think it through. She just kisses her.

Her calm lips find Catra's quivering ones and cover them gently, softly. She doesn't put a lot of force into it, but rather keeps it light and breathable.

The contact makes everything else stop for a second. By the time Adora eases back and realizes what she's done – and what it means – it's already too late. She feels her stomach gnarl and twist with dismay, and she tries to speak Catra's name.

But the instant those mis-matched eyes like sun and sky reveal themselves in the dark of night, Adora is rendered speechless. Catra doesn't need to speak either in order for Adora to understand what she's saying right now, because her eyes convey it all.

There is confusion first, as though she can't discern her own feelings about the kiss or Adora's meaning behind it.

Then it turns into something more serious. Her eyes narrow in the shadows as she pushes herself up. Adora sits with her, still unable to break eye contact. There's something much stronger in Catra's gaze now, something much more poignant. It's almost angry, almost fearful, but not quite either.

Ultimately, Adora understands it to be a challenge:

 _Are you sure about that?_

Catra doesn't have to say any of it out loud. Because Adora knows exactly what she's thinking.

For one reason or another, Catra thinks she can't be deserving of such affection. She isn't even sure if it's something she wants, let alone needs. She just... isn't sure about anything right now.

Adora is still struggling to find words or actions, anything to keep going from here. But a moment later, Catra lowers her gaze, and Adora isn't sure if her heart stops or starts again. But she feels she needs to say something, so she chokes out her voice.

"Catra-"

But she doesn't know what more to say other than that. Catra's ear flicks at the sound of her voice, but she doesn't look back at her.

"Let's just go back to sleep..."

That's her answer.

It alleviates a weight off Adora's chest, because it implies that Catra is willing to forgive and forget the kiss if it had been a mistake, an impulse.

But it also settles a brand new weight right onto Adora's heart.

Because... what if it _hadn't_ been a mistake? What if she'd _meant_ it? Does that mean Catra is rejecting her feelings?

She doesn't know. She doesn't know, and it hurts. She just sits there quietly and watches as Catra prepares to lie herself back down and forget it all.

Adora doesn't want to hurt her. That's always been the last thing she's ever wanted. She just isn't sure about this. She just doesn't _know_ , and she's too much of a coward to ask.

But something in her heart knows it wasn't a mistake. After all they've been through, there's no way it was.

So Adora reaches out to grab her partner's wrist, pulling Catra back up before she can hide herself beneath the blankets. Adora holds tightly to her shoulders and the small of her back and kisses her again.

It's firmer, deeper, and yet so much more delicate. It lasts even shorter than the previous one had, and when Adora eases back she feels like she might cry.

Evidently, she isn't the only one.

In fact, Catra's eyes start to water first, though she tries her damnedest to stop it.

Adora's heart seizes. It's her fault. _She_ made Catra cry. And this time it's for reasons much more delicate than the physical.

She loosens her grip, but doesn't let go. She can feel Catra's heart racing beneath her palm. She brings her other hand gently to the side of her friend's face, caressing her cheek and catching the tears.

"Catra-" she chokes. "I'm-"

 _"Idiot."_

"Huh? Whoa-" Adora yelps as Catra suddenly grabs her and yanks her close enough to feel her breath. Her mis-matched eyes are still furious and confused, but there's something else there too.

"I said you're an _idiot_ ," she hisses. "I gave you your chance. You can't take it back now, Adora. I won't let you."

Adora feels her heart swell. She tightens her hold on Catra too.

"Fine by me. Because I don't wanna take it back."

Silence falls for a moment. Catra searches her eyes so intensely Adora nearly falters. She feels Catra is looking into her very soul, looking for something she isn't even sure she possesses.

But Adora doesn't waver. She has nothing to hide from her.

Eventually, Catra must realize this. Because she sinks her claws gently into Adora's clothes and pulls her in for another kiss.

It's harder than the others, and lasts longer, as if to confirm for the both of them it's real in case they hadn't been entirely sure about the previous two. Now there's absolutely no question about it.

They don't make a sound as they ease each other back down onto the mattress. At least one of them is crying, but they pepper so many kisses across each other's foreheads and faces that all the whimpers and trembles are quelled before long.

Adora can feel the purr moving through Catra's body, filling her to the brim with all of these new emotions. Some are a little scary, but for the most part it's just... nice.

Adora kisses Catra's soft ears as one hand finds her injured arm, still aching from the combat exam. She spreads her fingers over Catra's forearm and rubs softly over the pulse in her wrist, while her lips continue planting kisses across her temple.

Catra manages to return the favor, tracing her fingers with impossible lightness over the scratch marks on Adora's cheek. Her fingers tremble at the memory of blood. She draws in a deep breath before kissing Adora there, covering the marks with her lips, awkward and nervous as it might be.

Adora can't help but smile. In fact, she even giggles. Catra freezes at the sound of it.

"Wh-What's so funny?" She sounds almost offended, or worried that she did something wrong. But Adora shakes her head, leaning forward to bump noses with her.

"It's nothing," she hums. "I'm so happy, Catra."

And Catra doesn't admit it with words, but the purr that's been rumbling in her chest all this time gets louder, and says enough.

Adora shifts and lies herself on top of Catra once more, cupping her cheek and gazing down into her eyes. Those eyes that want to let the mirth show through, but are far too skeptical not to let the anxiety through as well.

Even now, when they're both past the point of no return, those eyes still challenge her. Just like Adora had always done for her in the past, Catra is now giving her the option to run away if she wants to.

But the thought never crosses Adora's mind.

She answers Catra's uncertainty with one last kiss, soft yet strong. Catra whimpers in both fear and relief, locking her arms around her back. When they part, her voice is quiet.

"Adora-"

But Adora hushes her with a kiss to her forehead, brushing her scarred cheek fondly against Catra's.

"I'm sure, Catra. I _promise_."

She finds Catra's pinky and loops hers together with it. Catra exhales long and slow, and it rumbles with her purr.

They've both made it painfully clear of what they want. Even if they might end up regretting it someday.

But right now, as they curl up in each other's arms and drift off to the rhythm of a tandem heartbeat and a rolling purr...

Right now it's warm and it's good.

* * *

 **A/N: The line in the series of "I never wanted to leave _you_ " still messes me up to this day. I thought having Adora speak those words to Catra pre-series would just hurt a lot more. **

**And speaking of 'hurting a lot more' how do you like my concept of Adora and Catra falling in love slowly for the first 17 years of their lives, promising they'll always be together and there for each other, and then finally kissing and confirming their feelings just days before the canon series begins and they end up being torn apart? Yeah, I hate myself too.**

 **Well, this is the end of this story. I had a lot of fun writing it, and I hope you enjoyed. Here's to season 2 and many more!**

 **Please review!**


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